


Young Law and Luffy's Problem

by TheWomanWithAMessUpMind



Category: One Piece
Genre: Bottom Trafalgar D. Water Law, Drama & Romance, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Out of Charater, Top Monkey D. Luffy
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-11
Updated: 2021-02-24
Packaged: 2021-03-02 19:14:59
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 10
Words: 27,945
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24121933
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheWomanWithAMessUpMind/pseuds/TheWomanWithAMessUpMind
Summary: Bonney accidentally changed Law back to his seventeen-year-old self. That puts a damper on his plans. Not to mention, he's alone and on the run from Eustass Kid. He bumps into some of Luffy's crew before leaving the island. Then, he meets up with them again. They have an experiment they want to try because Luffy had been depressed lately. What will happen? How will it go? M/M Yaoi
Relationships: Monkey D. Luffy/Trafalgar D. Water Law
Comments: 53
Kudos: 273





	1. 17... Again

**17... Again**

"What the hell, Bonney-ya?!" Law was beyond pissed at the woman. He couldn't believe what the woman had done to him. He wanted to throttle her neck with his own, bare hands. He wanted to cut her up and hide the pieces all over the world so that they would never be found. He was very close to it, too.

In front of Law, Bonney stood with her hands in the air. Her defensive position did nothing to make him any less furious at her. "L-Law, please, calm down. It's... It's not that bad." She knew it sounded like she was trying to convince herself as well as him. She ducked as a teacup shattered to the wall right where her head had just been.

The man was huffing with rage. "I want to be back to normal! Fix me! Right fucking now!" He didn't want to stay in the form she had 'accidentally' put him in.

"I... I can't. It has to wear off." She dodged a chair. It shattered as it collided with the wall. She wasn't surprised at the strength he possessed. Bonney had set his age to about seventeen, or somewhere around there. It was by pure accident. She just touched him, and he changed. It was nice, though, to see him shorter than his normal height and his shirt slightly falling off of one shoulder.

"Then what am I supposed to do?! I can't walk around town like this!" Bonney had immediately brought him to an inn room to keep people from getting in on their conversation. It was worse because Law didn't have his crew with him. Just his nodachi and his powers.

Thinking quickly, Bonney approached Law. She slipped a pair of sea prism stone cuffs from her jacket pocket and snapped one side onto Law's wrist. His eyes widened as she attached the other side to the bedframe. "I'll be right back, okay? I'm going to go into town for a bit."

The woman left the room without staying to hear what Law had to say and chained to the bed. Alone. He felt as if she was going to make him do something he would regret and would humiliate him. Law decided to sit on the bed as he waited for the nutcase to come back.

About ten minutes later, Bonney returned to the room with a bag of what looked like clothes over her shoulder. She looked exhausted and a little nervous. "I brought you some clothes that will probably fit you better," she announced. Bonney dropped the bag next to the bed. "They're all similar to what you usually wear."

Unlocking the cuff on Law's wrist, Bonney wasn't ready for Law to grab her by the throat. "Bonney-ya, I have calmed down a considerable amount from my initial anger." He never tightened his grip nor dangled her off the floor. He just left his hand there as a threat and for fear. "Thank you for getting me some different clothes." He let her neck go after a moment of silence. Then, he turned to the bag of clothes and started to go through it. "Just how long will I be like this?"

"To be honest, about two or three weeks." Law groaned. He wanted to crawl under a rock and die. "And I would be careful, if I were you." Law turned to her and raised an eyebrow. "The Straw Hats are here along with the Kid Pirates," she informed. Today was just not his day.

Picking out a black hoodie and a pair of black and white spotted jeans, Law changed his larger clothes for the smaller ones. He put the other in the bag to hide them. Law sat back down on the bed. He looked at the sun for a moment through the window. Taking off his hat to scratch his head, Law watched as Bonney paced the room like something was bothering her.

Law put his had in the bag along with his nodachi. Getting off the bed, he wanted to leave. "Thanks for the information, Bonney-ya. I have to get going, though." The woman looked worried about him. An expression he hardly ever saw on her face. He went up to her with the bag over his shoulder. Law bowed to her before leaving the room and the inn altogether.

Keeping an eye out for both crews, Law was glad he had taken his hat off and replaced it with the hood of the hoodie. He was thankful that the hoodie didn't have the symbol on the front like his own. Law was headed for the docks for his small rowboat. He had told his crew that he wanted some alone time. They had, reluctantly, agreed and stopped on an island. Law had left them and set out on his own.

Shouting got him to look at the town square. Kid and Luffy were arguing loudly with each other. Law pushed into the crowd to see what was going on between them. They weren't fighting just yet, but it was quickly escalating to that. He stopped beside a woman. "Take that back, you hothead!" Luffy shouted in Kid's face.

"Then take back what you said, rubber dick!" Law wanted to laugh at the use of names they gave each other. He hadn't seen either one of the men in about a year or so. That was after the fight with Kaido. He heard the woman next to him giggle.

Turning to the woman, Law decided to ask her what was happening. "Excuse me, ma'am." She turned to him. "Do you know what those two are fighting about?" The woman looked very familiar. She had orange hair, brown eyes, and lightly tan skin.

"Oh. They're fighting over a friend of ours." Her voice made him realize who she actually was. It was Nami. His face went pale and he made sure that his face was hidden in the hood. "They've been at it for a good thirty minutes now."

Nodding, Law decided that it would be best for him to leave while he could without getting caught. He turned to leave but was held back by Nami. She had a hand on his shoulder that didn't have the pack on it. "Do you need something, ma'am?" He was nervous that she probably knew who he was.

"Don't you want to stick around to see the fight? It's about to start." She pointed to the two in the center right as Luffy threw the first punch. He wanted to stay to see how it ended but that might've been long enough for someone to recognize him.

"I'm very sorry, but I have other things to do." He politely shrugged her hand off his shoulder. Law was glad that he had also picked out a pair of fingerless gloves. They covered just enough to hide his tattoos on his fingers. Nami didn't stop him from leaving again but gave him a look that said she was suspicious of him.

Quickly exiting the crowd, Law felt better now that he didn't have her scrutinizing him. He let out a sigh as he went back in the direction of the docks. He was, again, stopped by someone by accidentally running into them. Both of them fell to the ground.

"Hey. Watch where you're going," the man said as he got up. Law looked up to see that it was Zoro who he had collided with. His blood ran cold.

"S-Sorry. I was... I was distracted." He got back to his feet and noticed that he was slightly shorter than the other man. Zoro was about three or four inches taller than him.

"It's fine, I guess." Zoro took a look around the place. "Do you know where the town square is?" Law nodded as he dusted himself off.

"You go straight down this road, then take a left. Keep going straight and you should see a crowd of people watching a fight." Zoro thanked him before patting him on the shoulder. Law thought it was weird. _I hope I don't run into any more of Straw Hat-ya's crew._

Taking a turn at the corner of a bakery, Law ran into one of Kid's crewmates. He didn't even look up at them to see who it was and just kept going on. He was afraid of being found out. He wanted to get to his boat as quickly as he could. Law sighed again as he continued on.

Walking by someone, Law noticed that it was Chopper but didn't acknowledge him. He didn't hear him stop just a little ways away. "L-Law?" He almost froze but just forced himself to keep going as if he hadn't heard him. "Law?" He heard Chopper trying to catch up with him.

All of a sudden, the reindeer was in front of him. "Torao." Law stopped and raised his head to look at him. The other seemed surprised and confused for a moment. "Law, is that really you?" Grabbing Chopper's arm, Law led him to an empty alley.

"Please, don't tell anyone I'm here," he whispered. He was worried and looked out the entrance of the alley.

"Why? What's wrong? Are you in trouble?" Chopper kept his voice down like Law.

"Eustass-ya is here fighting Straw Hat-ya." Chopper's eyes grew large. Law didn't blame him. He had been surprised to know that they were fighting, too.

"Why do you look so young? What happened to you?" Law understood his confusion. Knowing the guy, he knew that his looks were extremely different than the last time he saw him.

"Do you remember a woman named Jewelry Bonney from Sabaody three years ago?" He watched Chopper think it over for a moment before he nodded. "She changed me back to around seventeen. Please, don't tell anyone I'm here. I don't want anyone to know."

"Okay. I won't." He looked out the opening of the alley once again. Law was nervous. "Luffy's been missing you. He's been a little depressed without you." Chopper's face fell. "Anything you did with him and he goes to do now makes him lose interest in right away." Law felt bad to hear that. "Why do you want me to keep quiet about you being here?"

"Eustass-ya's been looking for me for a while now. I don't think his intentions are anywhere near... kind." Chopper looked even more worried than before. Law smiled at him to reassure him. "Tell Straw Hat-ya that I said hello when you get back to him." Chopper nodded in agreement as Law left the alley.

Sighing once again, Law quickened his pace to the docks. He got there in less than five minutes. Law was glad to see his small boat still attached to the docks. He boarded it and untied the rope from the dock. He wasn't surprised to see the Thousand Sunny or Kid's ship docked there.

He watched as the sun set lower into the sky. It was almost dark out. Pressing a button on the boat, a passage opened in the bottom of the boat. It held his things that he was carrying. Law placed the bag inside and closed it back. He watched the water around him. It was relaxing to watch the waves roll under the boat.

Sleep was slowly calling to him. He glanced across the way to the town. Luffy's ship was still there but he saw a few of the members standing in the dim light of the sunset on the ship. He smiled at the memories of the crew. Law missed them so much. He laid down and closed his eyes. _I hope Straw Hat-ya and the others are okay,_ was the last thought that crossed his mind before he fell into a peaceful slumber.

**It's a new story. Just... don't mind it. I like Luffy and Law being together. They're cute. They kind of reminded me of a married couple. Law's the level-headed, logical one of the two. Luffy's the goofy, fun-loving one. They fit well together. Well, tell me what you think. Have a marvelous day and I love you all. Tatty-bye!**

**Fun Facts:**

**1\. All dogs are banned from Antarctica since April 1994. This ban was made because of concern that dogs might spread diseases to seals.**

**2\. Hart Island is the final burial place to over a million New York City's unclaimed bodies, and thought to be the largest government-sponsored mass grave on earth.**

**3\. In Slovakia, they have Christmas Carp that live in the family bathtub for a few days before they are eaten.**

**4\. Banks have therapists known as 'wealth psychologist' who help ultra-rich clients, who are unable to mentally cope with their immense wealth.**


	2. Joining Them Again and the Plan

**Joining Them Again and the Plan**

The sound of shouting awoke Law from his peaceful slumber. He, slowly, opened his eyes to the glaring sun. He shielded his eyes with his right arm and rubbed at them with his left. "Hey! Are you okay down there?!" He continued to rub at his eyes to try to wake up some more. "Hey! Are you okay?!"

"Yes. I'm fine," Law called back to the person as he took in his surroundings. He looked up to see the Thousand Sunny next to his tiny boat. He groaned as he sat up and cracked his back. "I'll be alright. I was just resting."

"Hey, Luffy. Who're you shouting at?" Law knew that voice belonged to Sanji. He tensed up for just a moment. Law saw the man appear over the side of the ship. "Hey. Are you stranded?" Law was used to their friendliness by then.

"No. I'm just traveling," Law replied. He was thankful that his voice was a little higher like it was when he was seventeen. "Thank you for your concern, though." He sat in his boat and stretched.

"Would you like to join us for breakfast?" Sanji asked. Law wasn't all that worried about them finding out it was him. He was happy that they were nice to him. Law was just thankful that they weren't Kid.

"Sure. I'll come up." Law stood and two ropes were thrown down to him. He tied them to his boat. It was lifted and Law was facing the crew. His hood was still up. "Thank you for inviting me for breakfast," he said. He pulled the hood down and everyone smiled at him. Luffy's reaction was different, though.

"T-Torao?!" Law was expecting Luffy to recognize him. The others looked confused except for Chopper. "Is that really you?! What happened to you?!"

Nami came up to Law. "How can this bey him, Luffy? He's a little too young to be Law. And too short." She examined him. Nami stepped back from him with recognition. "You're the guy from the fight."

"Yes, Nami-ya. I was there when the fight started." She gasped. "And to answer your other question, I'm younger because of Bonney-ya." Robin stepped forward.

"From Sabaody, right?" Law nodded. He was still angry with the woman.

"As of right now, my body is about seventeen-years-old." Usopp stepped forward. He circled Law.

"How do we know you're really Law? You could be a spy or an assassin." Sighing, Law made a Room. He switched himself with Luffy. 

"Does that convince you that I am who I am?" The curly-haired man grumbled before going to stand next to Franky. He didn't look very happy about what happened. Law almost wanted to laugh at his actions.

"Where's your crew? Why are you traveling alone?" Brook asked. Law felt that it was a little strange that his crew wasn't with him.

"I wanted to go off on my own for a little while." He didn't want to tell anyone the truth. Law was keeping them safe from Kid by traveling by himself. "It gives them some time to do whatever they want and whatever I want."

"Like a vacation?" Luffy asked. Law nodded. It was sort of like a vacation.

"Why did you not come say hello when we were on the island?" Franky asked. Luffy was looking at him, expecting an answer that was reasonable to him.

Chopper decided to step in and answer that question. "Law did speak to me before we left." Luffy looked pissed off about knowing that. "He didn't want Kid to see him. He had a bad run-in with him a while ago." Luffy's anger quickly changed to relief.

"Eustass-ya and I had a... disagreement." Law crossed his arms over his chest. "I don't want to see him again." He saw the crew give him a look of sorrow. "And if I would've been found out by Eustass-ya, it would've started up a small war on the island. I didn't want innocent people to get hurt."

"Would you like to travel with us for a bit? Just until you get back to normal?" Nami asked. Law thought it over for a minute or so. _if I stay with them, I'll have protection from Eustass-ya. But if I stay with them, I'll have to deal with Straw Hat-ya._

"Alright. I'll stay with you until I'm back to normal." Luffy cheered while the others smiled. It was a better option than being alone and getting caught by Kid. Zoro and Sanji were eyeing him. The looks were making him a little uncomfortable. "is the room I stayed in still open?" 

Nami nodded. "Yep. Luffy didn't want any of us touching it." Law felt a little glad but also a little creeped out about his friend.

"Torao! We're going to have so much fun together! Just like when you were with us before!" Luffy's eagerness was a little embarrassing. Law wasn't a fun person to be around most of the time. He never understood Luffy's interest in him.

Zoro walked up to him with Sanji right behind him. The swordsman grabbed him by his left arm. "Luffy, we're going to borrow him for a minute or so, okay? We'll be quick about it." Law felt fear grip him as he spoke.

Luffy started to pout a little. "Okay. Just make it as quick as you can. I want to spend some time with him." Zoro nodded and started to lead Law to the kitchen with Sanji in tow. No one was in the kitchen. It was only Law, Sanji, and Zoro. The man let him go after he got him to sit down at the table.

"May I ask why the both of you decided to bring me here?" Law was a little worried that they didn't like him or had a problem with him. He didn't want to get on their bad side at the time. Also, he didn't remember them having a problem with him before.

"Listen, Law. Luffy's been having a hard time since you left the group," Sanji started as he lit a cigarette. "He's been picking fights with Pirates all over the Grand Line for no reason."

Zoro sat down across from him. "Some of the time, he wakes up in the middle of the night and goes to the room you stayed in." The man talked with a straight face, but his words were filled with worry for his Captain. "He wouldn't tell anyone what was wrong, and he attacked anyone who even came close to the room."

To say Law was surprised would be a big understatement. He was flabbergasted. "Does anyone know why he was acting that way? Are there any ideas?" He wondered if Luffy was okay. The two men shared a look between themselves.

"Yes and no. We can't really tell you right now," Sanji answered. Law raised an eyebrow at the answer he got. "Let's just say that we're going to try an experiment. Luffy is our guinea pig and you're a factor."

"Do the others know about this experiment?" Law felt a little bad for what they had planned for the younger Captain.

"We've been discussing it and decided to meet up with you for a while now to try it out," Zoro explained. "The others will be helping us." The man lowered his head. "We're going to make you disappear for a while every so often." The plan sounded very weird to him.

"We'll observe the reaction of our Captain while you're gone." Sanji blew out some smoke as he spoke. "Don't worry, though. You will still be on the ship but hidden from Luffy's view." Law thought it through.

"Will I be able to observe his reactions as well?" Zoro shrugged while Sanji nodded. "Okay then. When will we start this... experiment?"

"How about tomorrow? We'll let Luffy get used to you being here again before we start the project." Law nodded in agreement. He was interested in seeing the man's reactions to him not being there.

Nodding, Zoro left the kitchen, and Sanji went over to the sink. Law left right behind Zoro. He wasn't used to being shorter than most of the crew. As soon as he left the kitchen, Law was pulled up by two arms. Zoro didn't seem to notice what happened. "Torao! That was a looong talk. What did you all talk about?" Luffy was dangling from the top deck.

"Nothing really important," he answered. Law looked down to see that he was dangling about a foot or so off the ground. He looked back up at the smiling face above him. "What do you want to do, Straw Hat-ya?" He knew he needed to be around him the entire day for the experiment to work properly.

"Sanji's going to be cooking breakfast in a bit. What do you want to do?" Law thought for a moment. "Do you want to go read in the infirmary? Chopper got some new books a little while ago." Law perked up at that.

"Are you really okay with that?" Luffy grinned and nodded. "You can stay with me if you want to." Luffy agreed and lowered Law to the ground. He followed him inside to the infirmary.

Chopper was there and he knew what Law was there for. He handed him all the new books that he had gotten. It was about a stack of ten books. "They're good reads. I've read only a few of them, but they're good, nonetheless."

Taking the stack, Law went over to the desk and sat down. Luffy crawled under it and laid his head down in Law's lap. The man ignored him as he started to flip through the pages of a book on medicines for new illnesses. He was interested in the new diseases that have appeared in the past decade.

"Torao?" Law took his eyes from the book for a second to glance down at Luffy. "What have you been doing in the past year we've been apart?"

Law sighed. "I've been traveling all throughout the Grand Line just like you. I've been helping sick people amongst other things." Law finished ready the page and flipped it. "What have you been doing? Aside from searching for the One Piece, of course?"

He felt Luffy tracing circles on his right thigh. It felt a little weird, but Law didn't tell him to stop. "We've been helping others that have troubles. Nami's been building up her money and Sanji has a new admirer on some island we visited a few days ago." Law chuckled. "I've been doing okay, I guess."

"It sounds like you all have been doing a lot since I've been gone," Law stated. Luffy nodded and Law went back to reading. He could still feel Luffy drawing patterns on his thigh with his fingers. It was relaxing, but at the same time, strange. Something that Law didn't want to tell the other was that his attitude toward certain things and people had changed. He was a little kinder and a lot more relaxed thanks to being around Luffy for as long as he had been.

...

After a while, Sanji came into the room. "Hey, Law. Have you seen Luffy anywhere? I can't seem to find him in his usual spots." Law pointed to the table and moved a bit. Luffy waved a hand at him from underneath the desk.

"Did you need something, Sanji?" Luffy asked as he stayed under the desk and in between Law's legs.

"Breakfast's ready," Sanji answered. Luffy dashed out from under the desk to the door in a split second with his arm around Law. Sanji smiled at his eagerness and Law's expression of surprise at the other's actions.

In the kitchen, everyone was seated in their usual spots around the table. Law sat right next to Luffy because he made him. "It's good to have you eating with us again," Robin said after he sat down. Luffy had let him go as they sat down.

"Feels just like old times." Law had a plate placed in front of him. It had everything but bread on it. He looked up at Sanji who gave him a kind smile.

Luffy looked excited to eat. Like every time he saw him eat. Everyone ate like it wa normal. It felt different to be eating with the Straw Hats again after a year of being away. Luffy didn't try to steal his food and Law ate everything on his plate which was new to the others.

"Law, you ate everything. That's new," Nami commented as she continued eating. He had just finished his food a few minutes ago. He looked down at his clean plate.

"Since I have my seventeen-year-old body back, my appetite was big at the time." The crew seemed to be surprised by that. Luffy just grinned. Law got another helping of the food and ate it all once again. He was stuffed after a bit and decided to go back to the infirmary to continue reading. Luffy followed him.

In the infirmary, Law felt a tap on his arm. He turned away from his book to see Chopper looking up at him, nervously. "May I help you, Tony-ya?" He felt Luffy grip his leg as he turned his body a little to the reindeer.

"I want to do a physical on you to see if you're okay. Is that alright with you?" Law nodded and felt Luffy let him go as he stood up.

Moving to a bed, Chopper started with the basics. He checked his heartbeat, lungs, ears, and all the other things. Luffy stood next to Chopper as he worked. "Do you feel any different than you did before you were changed?"

"No. It's just a little different to be shorter than most people again." Chopper nodded as he stepped back. "I feel fine. Even great." He was glad to know that he was still healthy.

"So, he's all good?" Luffy asked. Chopper told him that Law was perfectly healthy. This excited the man. "Torao is healthy!" he chanted a few times. Law was happy with the young man's enthusiasm. It was just like his old self.

"I hope it stays that way." Chopper looked concerned for him. He wasn't sure about the side effects of Bonney's powers other than on herself. Law was certain that nothing bad could happen, could it? "I'll keep an eye on you until you're back to normal." Law thought it was a good idea.

Getting off the bed, Law walked up to Luffy. "What do you want to do?" He knew that Luffy didn't want to just watch him read all day. Law had some energy he could burn off, anyway.

"Let's go fishing, Sanji said that we need more fish." Law agreed and followed Luffy to the deck. They got fishing poles and started to fish. They caught tons of fish and everyone was happy with that. Sanji made grilled fish for dinner and Law ate four helpings of it. The crew was astonished at his appetite. It was something they were going to have to get used to him being back in his seventeen body.

When night came around, Law trudged to his room. They said it was the same as when he had left. Getting to it, Law was surprised that it was exactly the same as he left it. Seeing the bed, he almost jumped on it in joy. He was tired. Luffy had worn him out that day. They ran around and played games. Luffy seemed so happy that he was back. He agreed with anything and everything that the kid wanted to do. It was exhausting even with his younger body. Law laid down and closed his eyes. He was worried about what would happen the next day. He fell asleep a few minutes later.

**I hope you all are enjoying it. Let me know what you think. I love you all very, very much. Have a glorious day. Tatty-bye!**

**Fun Facts:**

**1\. People don't sneeze in their sleep due to their brain shutting down the reflex.**

**2\. If you made $1 every second, it would take you 2,921 years to have more money than Bill Gates (over $92.1 billion dollars).**

**3\. In 2013 _Toy Story_ was remade shot-for-shot with real toys and real people and can be found on YouTube.**

**4\. The word "Jurassic," which we so often associate with dinosaurs, comes from the Celtic word for "forest".**


	3. Explanation of the Plan and Memory

**Explanation of the Plan and Memory**

The feeling of something wrapped around his body aroused Law from his peaceful, dreamless slumber. Slowly, he blinked his eyes to wake up a little more. He wasn't surprised to find that he was in his room on the Thousand Sunny. Law remembered all the events from the day and night before.

Turning over as much as he could with the object wrapped around him, Law almost screamed in surprise when he came face-to-face with a sleeping, loudly snoring Luffy. He was even drooling a little. All Law did was stare at him for what felt like hours before doing anything.

Law decided that he wanted to get up. As carefully as he could, he removed Luffy's arms and legs from around his body. It was a hassle, but he got it done, nonetheless. Luffy stirred a bit but didn't wake. He was thankful for that.

When he was free from him, Law quietly made his way out of the room. He didn't want to wake Luffy up yet. He had to ask the crew a few questions about how the experiment was going to work, where he was going to be hidden, and how long they intended for him to disappear.

He decided to see if all eight were in the kitchen. Starting the walk to the room, he started to think about the last encounter his crew had with Kid and his crew. It hadn't been a pleasant meeting and a few of his crew members had been rushed to the infirmary by the end of it. Not good at all. He had stayed out of sight.

Arriving at the room, he was thankful that all of them were in the room. All except for their Captain. "Law," Nami said as she motioned for him to come and sit at the table with them. He came and sat down beside her. "We were just about to come wake you up."

"I don't think that would've been a good idea," he replied.

"Why?" Zoro asked. He was on the other side of the woman.  
"Because Straw Hat-ya was int he bed with me."

"Good point," Usopp answered. The rest of them agreed with nods. He understood that they didn't want the other up yet.

"So, are you ready to start our experiment?" Sanji asked as he blew out some smoke.

"Yeah. But I have some questions before we start it."

"We'll answer them as best as we can," Robin said. It was nice to know that he could trust them.

"First question: how is this going to go? Can you explain it more to me?'

"Well, we want to hide you at random points during the day. Luffy's been acting exceedingly strange since we split ways a year ago," Chopper started. "He's been really depressed and not many things can make him happy or lift his spirits. He also picks fights with other Pirates for seemingly no reason." Law nodded in understanding. "Now that you're back, he's acting almost normal. We want to see if his depression and anger were because he was missing you."

"I see. That's why you want me to disappear." The blue-nosed reindeer nodded. "Okay. Second question: where will I be hiding from him? Are there certain areas or places that I'll be in that I can observe him as well?"

"That's easy," Franky said with a grin. "Without Luffy knowing, I've been modifying the ship. I built hidden areas all over the ship. There's a few in the kitchen, about two or three in the bathroom, four in the aquarium bar, ten or so on the deck, and a good bit more in other places all over the ship." He was astonished to know about them. "You'll be able to see how he reacts. So, don't worry about that."

"Can you show me where they are?" Law asked.

"We will when it comes time for us to hide you," Brook answered.

"And my third question: how long will I be in hiding?" That made them look between each other. "Did you guys not think about that?"

"No. We did," Nami responded. "It's just... We can't decide on doing it for an hour or two hours."

"I can do it for two." He shrugged. "Better for it to go on for a longer time. The longer I'm 'missing', the more we can see how he reacts to it."

"That's a really good point," Usopp announced. Law was thankful that they agreed with him without any problems. "So, when he gets up, we'll start the experiment."

"Got it." Law's stomach growled. He was hungry.

"I'm going to make breakfast," Sanji told them. After that, they all dispersed to do whatever they wanted to do. Law decided to stay at the kitchen table.

"Back Leg-ya?" He wanted to ask Sanji a few questions about how Luffy behaved the day before.

"Yeah?" The cook was gathering ingredients together to start cooking.

"Do you know why Straw Hat-ya has missed me? It's not like I was ever a part of the crew. I just stayed with you guys for a bit." Sanji stopped moving around to look at him. He sighed. Law wondered if it was because he didn't know how to tell him or some other reason.

"To be honest, we all missed you." That stupefied him. _What? They all missed me?_

"Why? I didn't do much while I was here. I just read a lot and did very few things with anyone." Law was trying to figure out why they would miss him. It confused him.

"You say that, but didn't you save us when we were at Dressrosa?" Law opened his mouth to say something but Sanji cut him off. "You saved me when Doflamingo almost killed me, you told us to take Caesar and Momonosuke and leave for Zou, during that time, you kept Doflamingo off of us while we were able to escape, you protected Luffy when he was trying to regain his Haki, you helped the others take care of Zunesha when she got hurt, and you helped us with Kaido." Law's face went red at all of his praise. "Not to mention, you saved Luffy's life three years ago. You're a great friend of ours because you helped us. We helped you to return the favor."

"I... I understand." He looked away from the man, face still bright red. Law was a little uncomfortable about the conversation he just had with him.

"So, we missed seeing you." Sanji went back to cooking. "We haven't heard anything from you for about a year. Of course, it upset us all because it was like you and your crew dropped off the face of the planet."

"I... I know." Law remembered why he dropped off the face of the earth. He hadn't even done anything he normally did other than treating people.

...

**_"Captain, are you going to be okay?" Bepo asked in an extremely worried voice. Law was coughing up blood as he laid in his bed._ **

**_"I'm... *cough* ...I'll be f-fi-fine," Law tired to reassure him. Almost all of his crew members were in his room. It was to the point that they were trying to shove each other out of the way to see him._ **

**_Law... didn't look so good. At all. He was covered in bloody bandages, coughing up blood, and couldn't move all that well if at all. It hurt all over. He was in agony. The bed was even painful to lay on. This was not looking good for him._ **

**_"We... We're... We're underw-water... r-right?" he asked. Law was even wheezing as he breathed through his mouth. It was excruciating every time he breathed in. His lungs felt like they were on fire._ **

**_"Yeah," Penguin answered. You could tell that he was on the verge of tears. All of them were. "C-Cap'in... can you tell us what the hell happened to you? You look..."_ **

**_Law tried to laugh. It just turned to bouts of coughing fits and more blood coming out. "Don't do that," Bepo chastised him while wiping the blood away with a clean, white rag. Law tried to calm himself down enough to talk again._ **

**_"I l-look like... sh-shit," he replied. He tried to move his arm to a more comfortable position. Law flinched and had to grit his teeth together to keep in the scream that threatened to escape him. He decided to lay his broken, battered, and bandaged arm on his stomach._ **

**_"You didn't answer Penguin," Shachi spoke up. He sounded in near tears just like Penguin. "What happened to you? How did you get like this?" All twenty were waiting for him to answer them. It wasn't a good moment for him. He was worrying his friends and they didn't know how to help him._ **

**_He held up his better hand. After a second, he placed it on his face. It was battered but not as bad as the other one. Tears started to pour from his eyes as he covered his face so that they wouldn't see._ **

**_Bepo ushered the others out. Law knew that the other was trying to keep him from looking weak in front of the rest of them. Law only cried in front of his best friend and navigator. "Law..." He slowly removed his hand to look at him. "What happened? Please, tell me what happened to you." The bear pulled up a chair before grabbing his good hand to hold._ **

**_"E-Eu-Eustass-ya..." Law said the name with venom and terror mixed together. He turned his head away from Bepo. Law wanted to move his right leg but couldn't. For one, it was in a sling, and second, was because it was broken. He wouldn't be able to move it for a while._ **

**_"What happened between you two? Why did he do this to you?" Bepo asked the question as he brought his hand to his face and started to rub his cheek with the back of it. Tears were already escaping his eyes as he continued to caress his hand with the side of his face._ **

**_"B-Be-Because..." Law remembered what had transpired just a few hours before. It made a shudder of fear run down his spine. It hurt his body. "I re-rejected him," he confessed._ **

**_The guy had told him that he loved him and tried to make a move on him. Law had openly rejected him and told Kid that he didn't like him like that. The younger Captain got pissy and demanded why Law didn't like him like that and if there was someone else he liked already._ **

**_Law had been dumbfounded when Kid had asked him if he liked someone else. He denied it because it was the truth at the time. Law didn't like anyone at that point. Before he knew it, Kid had roared like an animal at him as he rushed him. And thus, he beat him into the state he was in. The memories made his body hurt even more. The bag thing was that Kid had produced a sea stone necklace and forced it around his neck before he ever started. He had no way to fight back and couldn't even muster enough energy to call for help._ **

**_When the man had stopped his onslaught, Law could hardly breathe, couldn't move at all, and was going in and out of consciousness. Kid stood over him with anger that quickly turned to a ninja-like calm. Law would never forget the words that Kid spoke to him before leaving him for dead on the deck of his submarine. That was why he feared him._ **

**_"I'll be back for you. Your answer will be yes, or I'll kidnap you and rape you until you submit to being mine." And with those parting words, Kid ripped the necklace off of him before he left the ship to go back to his._ **

**_He had started to cry as he stayed where he had been. Law couldn't move because the pain had been too much and he couldn't summon enough energy to call out for help. It took his crew a while to figure out that something wasn't right. They came out and found him._ **

**_That was how he found himself in the situation he was in. All bandaged up and broken. Bepo nodded in understanding. The bear stayed next to him as he cried even more about his situation._ **

...

"I had a small... accident... close to a year ago," Law conceded. "I left my crew after a bit to travel on my own for now." Sanji nodded.

"What kind of accident?" Law stiffened. He didn't want to tell anyone else the truth. Only Bepo knew what had happened. He would be damned if he told another soul about it.

"N-Nothing too important. It's in the past." The man gave him a confused expression as he looked up from his work. "Don't worry about it. It's done and over with. Nothing really to worry about."

"Okay. If you say so." That was when Luffy burst into the room.

"Torao! How long have you been up?" Luffy asked as he came to sit next to him at the table. Law sighed as the other sat down.

"I've been up for a bit. I didn't want to wake you up before I don't feel like it." Luffy nodded as he smiled at him.

"I'm glad to see that you're okay." Law raised an eyebrow. _Why would he think that I might not be okay? Is there something going on in his mind?_

"Good to see you're alright," Law replied. Luffy laughed. He knew that he would disappear at some point during the day. He would have to be ready for that time when it came. He didn't know if he would be ready if they don't tell him before they hid him.

**Ta-da. Here you all go. I'm glad to see that so many people like it. Please, let me know what you think of this chapter. I'm very happy that you all are enjoying it. Have a magnificent day and I love you all. Tatty-bye!**

**P.S. - The memory was the last time Law faced Kid one on one. Earlier in the story, I said that the last time Kid visited some of Law's crew were rushed to the infirmary. After the problem with Kid, Law refused to come out and faced him and just hid in his sub. Kid attacked his crew because they wouldn't let him inside and because Law wouldn't come out. I hope this clarifies some things.**

**Fun Facts:**

**1\. The first film ever shown in the White House was _The Birth of a Nation_ , a pro-white supremacy silent film that the KKK also used as a recruiting tool.**

**2\. In September 2007, a guy named Kevin Shelley broke 46 wooden toilet seats with his head in one minute to create a world record.**

**3\. Samuel Jackson has a clause in his film contracts that allows him to play golf during film shots whenever he wants.**

**4\. In 1945 the first atomic bomb was created, and was nicknamed "The Gadget".**


	4. Admirers and First Disappearance

**Admirers and First Disappearance**

Law ate about four helpings of breakfast that morning. Again, the whole crew was shocked to see that he had eaten so much more than he normally did. To him, he didn't really care if it was shocking to them or not. He needed to store some energy for the day. Eating was how you do that.

After breakfast, Law offered to help Sanji with the dishes. The cook was surprised to see how friendly he was being. But he didn't argue with him and allowed him to help. Luffy said that he was going to find something for them to do together while he washed the dishes with Sanji. Law nodded. But he saw something in Luffy's eyes as he looked at his old friend and cook.

"I think something's up with your Captain," Law voiced his thoughts as they worked. He was helping the man set the dishes up. Sanji was washing them while Law rinsed them off and dried them.

"I'm surprised you didn't notice it when you first arrived yesterday," Sanji replied. Law looked at him with a raised eyebrow.

"What do you mean by that?" The cook began to wash the dishes before answering him.

"Well, did you notice that he didn't like any of us touching or even getting close to you?"

"No. I never noticed him do that." Sanji handed some dishes off to him. Law rinsed them in the sink before taking a dry towel and drying them off. After that, he put them to the side to put up later.

"Well, it seems like he's jealous of anyone who gets even a little too close to you." Sanji seemed to think about something for a second. "Proximity wise." Law understood.

"Is that why he would attack anyone who went near the room I stayed in?"

"I guess so." Sanji looked to be thinking something over again. "It's kind of like, he would attack anyone who came near the place you spent the most time in. Almost like he was trying to preserve the last area you were in the most."

"I see." They talked about more things. Law found out that the 'admirer' Luffy told him about was a man from an island they last visited before the one the day before yesterday. "So, he chased you all over the entire island?" he asked with amusement in his voice.

"Yes. It was extremely annoying. I tried to hide from him. It was like the man was a fucking bloodhound! He was always able to find me no matter where I went." Law laughed at hearing that. "Oh yeah, tough guy? You can't lie that you haven't been chased over an entire island by an admirer."

Law calmed his laughing down before answering him. "You're right. I can't deny that. Mainly because I have been chased over entire islands by admirers." Sanji stopped washing. It made Law turn to him. The chainsmoker was staring at him with wide eyes. "What? You told me I couldn't lie. I didn't."

"You've been chased before?"

"Of course." Law turned around and leaned his back on the sink. "Hasn't everyone on your crew been chased at least once before?"

"Yeah. But I didn't expect you to be chased. Aren't you considered 'The Surgeon of Death'?" 

A chuckle escaped him. "Are you saying that you expected people to run away from me, not chase me?" Sanji looked away. "Yes, I am considered that. But I still have had both men and women chase me because they like me. I had to have Bepo accompany me to keep them away."

Sanji went back to washing and Law turned back to the sink. "What were the outcomes of those chases?"

"Are you interested in my love life, Black Leg-ya?" Sanji opened his mouth to say something. law laughed before the could say anything. "I'm just joking with you. One time, I came back to my ship with lipstick all over my face and disheveled clothes from multiple women."

"Are you a playboy?"

"Hell no. I got the lipstick all over my face from them holding me down and kissing me. The reason my clothes were messed up was from them grabbing me and me trying to get away from them." He shivered with disgust at the memories. "To be honest, it was a horrifying experience."

"I have a personal question for you," Sanji stated as he washed the last bit of dishes.

"Shoot away."

"Do you prefer women or men?" Law dried the last of the dishes before placing them to the side.

"To be honest with you, I don't really care about people's gender." He shrugged. "I'm more of a personality kind of person." Sanji nodded.

"You're more of a 'people person'."

"Exactly." They put the dishes away after he was finished drying them. They talked about their preferences for their partners.

"Are you a virgin?" Sanji asked. Law gave him a shocked look. _You don't just ask someone that question out of the blue! That's very personal!_ He couldn't believe the guy asked him that question like he was asking about the weather forecast.

"Not really. No. Depends on how you see it." It was Sanji's turn to look confused.

"What do you mean?" He blew out some smoke right after he asked the question.

"Well, I'm a virgin in one way while not in the other." The cook raised an eyebrow. "I've had sex with women. Not men." A lightbulb seemed to go off in Sanji's head. It clicked for him. Sanji nodded as they walked away from the sink.

Suddenly, Luffy burst into the room. "Torao! I found something that we can play!" Law jumped when he shouted. He wouldn't admit it, but it had actually scared the shit out of him when Luffy just barged in without announcement. Then, his eyes narrowed at Sanji. "Let's go. I want to play."

Law looked between the two. _Yeah. I believe Black Leg-ya's right. I think Straw Hat-ya is jealous of the others._ "Alright. I'm coming." He walked up to Luffy and grabbed him by the arm. "Let's go. You're welcome for the help, Black Leg-ya."

"Thanks. Maybe you'll help me with the dishes tonight?" Law laughed a little.

"Don't push your luck." That made Sanji laugh as well. With that, the two Captains left the kitchen. "So, what are we going to do?" he asked as he let Luffy's arm go. The younger one looked upset about something. "Is there something wrong?"

"What were you doing with Sanji?" That made him confused.

"Washing dishes. And talking about our adventures on other islands." Luffy didn't look convinced. It was like he was warring with himself on either trusting Law's word or not.

The kid gave him a forced smile. It unnerved Law just a little bit. "Okay." Then it turned to a genuine smile. "Want to play I Spy?" he asked as they stopped near the head of the ship.

Law agreed and sat on the head of the lion. They were careful to make sure that they wouldn't fall off. It was a nice spot. Luffy never let anyone sit with him let alone let them sit on the head at all.

"Do you want to start?" Luffy asked him. Law shrugged and started.

"Alright." He looked around the ship for something to give a hint about. His eyes landed on Usopp messing with a piece of pink material. "I spy something pink." Luffy grinned as he looked around ro find it.

"Is it Nami's top?" Luffy asked as he pointed to her pink bikini top.

"Nope. Try again." The other Captain huffed before scanning the area again.

"Franky's hands?"

"Try again." It was apparent that Luffy was getting frustrated that he couldn't find what Law had spotted.

To his surprise, Usopp looked to be making some sort of clothing item. Law wondered what he could be making. "Is it what Usopp's messing with?" Luffy's voice made him remember that the other was with him. The suddenness of him talking made him jump a little.

"Yes. Okay. Your turn." Luffy, excitedly, began to search around for something to spy. Law thought he was amusing to watch. The way he looked so happy and joyful made him smile.

"I spy something... blue!" Luffy said. He sounded really confident when he said it. It made him sound like a kid that just won three pounds of candy from a competition that had no competitors to begin with.

Looking around, Law scanned the ship. "Is it the ocean?" he guessed. Luffy shook his head with a big grin on his face. He decided to go again. "Is it Tony-ya's hat?"

"Nope. You're getting close, though." That confused him. _What does he mean by I'm getting close?_ Law studied the ship hard, trying to find something blue. There weren't that many things on the ship that were blue.

"Is it Nico-ya's shirt?" The woman was wearing a dark blue tank top. It had a picture of a white cat on the front of it.

"No. You're really close." Law was utterly confused. He couldn't find anything else that was blue on the ship.

"Alright. I give up. What did you spy?" Luffy giggled as Law turned to look at him. Luffy looked like he was enjoying his time with him.

"Your pants. They're blue." Law raised an eyebrow before looking down at his pants. _He's right. They are blue._ His pants were light blue like his normal ones, except that they had dark blue spots instead of black ones. "Aright. Your turn again."

"Let's take a break for a moment. I have to go to the restroom." Luffy, reluctantly, agreed and allowed him to get up and leave. Law thought it was strange that he had to tell him where he was going. _I guess that it's because he's so keen on being near me. It's very weird._

Getting up, Law, carefully, got off the head of the lion. He didn't want to accidentally slip and fall into the ocean. It was a little difficult, but he was able to get down without any incidents. He breathed out a sigh of relief when he was safely back on the deck.

He walked to the bathroom. It felt like he was being followed. It was a little strange and made him feel nervous. At that bathroom, the feeling went away when the door shut. Law peed before going to leave the room.

When he opened the door, Nami grabbed a hold of his arm and shoved him back into the room. "Nami-ya? What're you doing?" he asked as she let his arm go.

"Hiding you, remember?" Then, he remembered. Before he could say anything else, she slammed her elbow onto the wall. A second later, a hidden door opened up. It was big enough to fit, at least, two people inside. "Follow the path straight and you'll come to a wall. There's a piece of wall that can slide open. You should be able to see out of it when you open it."

"O...kay." She smiled as she hustled him into the wall. "Will he be able to see me if I look out of it?"

"No. There's a one-sided panel in front of the part that Franky installed. It'll hide you but allow you to see what's happening on deck." Law nodded. "I'll come get you after two hours. Try to be as quiet as you can." He agreed. After that, Nami shut the door.

It was dark in the space. Blindly, Law felt his way forward. Soon enough, he found the wall that Nami told him would be there. Feeling around on the wall, Law, finally, found the slot that the woman had told him about.

Law slid it open and was amazed. He was able to see the entire deck. Especially Luffy. The teen looked to be waiting for him to return. It was a sad sight to see because he looked somber now that he was gone.

The good thing was that he could hear everything that was happening on the deck. _Did Robo-ya install something so I can hear no matter how far I am from him?_ Usopp walked by Luffy. "Hey, Usopp." Luffy got the other man's attention.

"Yes?" The man turned to his Captain. Law couldn't see his face because he had his back to him. "What's up?"

"Do you think Torao will be back soon?" he asked him.

"I don't know. That depends. Where did he go?" Usopp sounded like he was nervous and trying not to tell him anything.

"He went to the bathroom. So, how long do you think he'll be gone?" Luffy looked like he was a depressed man. Almost like he had his favourite toy taken away from him and had no idea where it was nor how long until he got it back.

"Probably a few minutes. I really don't know." Luffy nodded before the sniper walked away from him. Law felt awful for doing something like this to him.

After about ten to fifteen minutes, Luffy hopped off the lion's head and began to walk inside. "Where're you going, Luffy?" Robin asked as he passed by her.

"I'm going to see if Torao's okay. He's been gone for a while." The woman just nodded before going back to reading her book. Law already knew that they were paying close attention to him, even if it didn't seem like it.

Law could hear the younger Captain walking through the ship. His footsteps were heavy. It made him think that the other was so forlorn that he didn't have the energy he normally did. It was a depressing thing to think about. It made law want to call off the plan entirely.

"Torao? Are you still in there?" Luffy called. Law knew that he was right outside the bathroom door. To keep the plan in motion, Law didn't answer him. That seemed to confuse the other. "Torao?" He knocked on the door this time.

"Is something the matter, Luffy?" Sanji asked. Law hadn't heard him walk up to the other.

"Torao said that he needed to use the bathroom," he began to explain. "I came to see if he's alright, but he won't answer me. Could something be wrong?" The guy sounded like he was on the verge of having a panic attack. "Can you open the door so I can check on him?"

"The door's locked?"

Law could hear the knob jiggle from Luffy trying to open it. "Yeah. See? I can't open it."

"Don't you think it would be rude to just walk in on him if he's still using it?" Law knew that Sanji was just trying to keep Luffy from noticing that Law was hidden. It was a good effort for him to do so for him. 

"Yeah. But-"

"Plus, I don't have the key. I think Nami-san was the last one with it." Law knew that was true because Nami was the one that left the room and shut the door after she hid him. _I guess that she locked it when she left._

"I'll go ask her about it." He heard the younger one walk off from the door. Sanji left a minute or so after him.

Looking out the slot again, Law saw Luffy appear on the deck. He scanned the area before spotting the woman. The young man made a bee-line right to her. Law could still hear everything going on around him.

"Hey, Nami," he greeted her as he walked up to her.

Nami turned to him with a small smile. "Hey, Luffy. Is there something you need?" It was like they were trying to be extra nice to him, trying not to upset him or anything.

"Do you have the key to the bathroom?" he asked in an emotionless voice. Law couldn't see Luffy's face, but he could see Nami's. She raised an eyebrow.

"Why do you want to know?"

Because Torao went to the bathroom and was gone for a while. I went to check on him. I knocked on the door and called out to him, but he didn't answer me." Nami gave him a sorrowful expression. "Sanji said that you were the last on with the key. Can I have it?"

"You mean that you want to enter the bathroom while Law's in there?"

"Yeah. What if he's hurt or something?"

"But it's still rude to walk in on someone in the bathroom," she countered. "And, to be honest, I don't remember where I put the key." Law knew that was a lie. He could hear it in her voice. Luffy didn't seem to notice it, though.

"Oh. Okay." He sounded on the verge of tears.

"Don't worry too much, Luffy. I'm sure he'll be back in a bit." She gave him a reassuring smile. "It's not like he left the ship, right? He's still here."

Luffy sighed. "I know. It's just... Nothing. I'll just wait for him." Law wondered what he had wanted to say. It sounded like he was going to confess something to her. "Let me know when you see him."

"Sure thing. What're you going to do?" the navigator asked. She put a hand on her hip.

"I'm going to go relax on the deck." Nami nodded and looked extremely guilty for the way he was acting.

Law watched Luffy go near the front of the ship and lay down. He turned away from the rest of the deck. It hurt Law to see him like that. It was almost like he was breaking down because he wasn't back yet.

After a bit, he watched Luffy's body start to shake. Law, immediately, knew that the Straw Hat Captain wa scrying. It hurt him even more to know that he was crying. Because he was gone for so long. It hurt his heart to do something like that to him.

About an hour or so later, Law was waiting for Nami to come and get him. He had watched Luffy's body shake with his crying. Then, it stopped about thirty minutes ago. Law assumed that Luffy had fallen asleep after all of his crying.

When Nami started to walk back to the bathroom, Law shut the slot back before feeling his way back to where the door was. After he arrived at the panel, he waited for Nami to open it back up.

It took her about five minutes to get back and enter the bathroom. He heard her jab the wall right before the door opened up. She was smiling, somberly, at him. "Did you guys get what you needed today?" he asked as he exited the hiding spot.

"We got some data. To confirm our suspicions, we'll keep doing this for a few more days." She shrugged. "I hope he doesn't do the same thing he did today."

"I agree. It was a miserable sight to see him so upset." Nami nodded in agreement.

"You should go check on him. He hasn't moved from the same spot in over an hour."Law agreed before leaving the bathroom.

On the deck, he slowly walked over to the younger man. Law carefully sat down next to him, making sure he didn't wake him up. Looking over to him, he had been right. There were stains of tears down his face. _Poor kid. He was so dejected that he cried himself to sleep. It's so pitiful._

Placing a hand in his hair, Law felt the other press into his hand. He raked his fingers through his hair. It was calming and Luffy looked to be enjoying it even though he was asleep. The kid rubbed his head into his hand every time he ran his hand through his hair.

After about thirty minutes of him messing with Luffy's hair, Law started to fall asleep. The actions he was doing were lulling him to sleep. Then, he heard Luffy mumble something in his sleep.

Law leaned down to hear what the other had said. "Torao..." Law was shocked when he heard his nickname come from him. He stayed close to see if the other would say anything else. "Where... are... you?" he asked in a small, quiet voice.

"I'm right here," Law answered in a low voice. He was still combing through his hair. "I'm still here."

"Okay..." He curled up closer to Law's leg. His head was almost pressing into his side. "Don't... go anywhere," Luffy begged.

"I'm not going anywhere anytime soon," Law assured him. He was still falling asleep. Law saw him smile before he fell asleep. It was nice and made him feel better.

**Hope you all like the story so far. Let me know what you think of this chapter. Have a blessed day and I love you all. Tatty-bye!**

**Fun Facts:**

**1\. Iguanas have three eyes. Two normal eyes and a third eye on top of their head that only perceives brightness.**

**2\. Big Ben (Elizabeth Tower) in London is leaning over so much it can now be seen with the naked eye. In 4,000 years it will be at the same angle as the tower in Pisa is now.**

**3\. Donkey Kong got his name because his creator believed 'donkey' meant 'stupid' in English and wanted to convey the impression that the character was a "Stupid Ape".**

**4\. Flamingos bend their legs at the ankle, not the knee.**


	5. Scars and Confrontation

**Scars and Confrontation**

He sighed as he leaned against the railing on the ship while standing up. It was dusk and Law was tired from his day with Luffy. The kid was passed out right next to him. He had fallen asleep next to the guy before waking up not too long ago. Luffy still hadn't woken up from before.

Law was enjoying the sunset before him. Suddenly, arms wrapped around his left leg. Looking down, he found Luffy hold on, tightly, to his leg. Law just shrugged and looked back out to the sea and the sunset.

"Torao-kun..." Law turned his head to see Robin walking up to him. He nodded to her in acknowledgment. "How are you doing? I can see that Luffy's still asleep."

"I'm fine. I think he just exhausted himself earlier," Law informed her. "How's the rest of the crew?"

"We're fine." She leaned on the railing right next to him. On the side that Luffy wasn't laying on. "Sanji told me that you had an accident close to a year ago. He said that was the reason we hadn't heard anything from nor about you nor your crew for such a long time."

 _I knew that Black Leg-ya would say something to the rest of the crew about it. They tell each other almost everything._ "Yeah. I had an... accident. After, I broke off from my crew.' He saw her face change. "Don't worry. I'm still their Captain. I just wanted some... time to myself."

Robin didn't look too convinced. "Torao-kun, I'll accept your excuse. For now. But you'll need to tell someone on this ship the truth at some point." Law felt confused. "You wouldn't want someone to find out the truth in the wrong way."

It felt like his blood ran cold. "I... understand." _Shit. If I even take my shirt off, they'll figure out that something's wrong._ Fear of them finding out gripped him. "I'll... try... to figure out what I want to say. I'll tell one of you at some point. I promise."

The woman smiled kindly at him. "When you tell one of us, you'll have to accept the fact that all of us will know about it pretty soon after."

He nodded. That was what he was afraid of. "I know. You guys don't like to keep secrets from each other. Especially if it's about a friend of yours." Robin chuckled before agreeing with him.

"Oh. Sanji wanted me to tell you that dinner will be ready soon." She pointed to Luffy who was still around his leg. "You'll need to wake him up when he says that it's ready." Law nodded before she walked off. He turned back to the sunset.

About thirty minutes later, Sanji announced that dinner was ready. Luffy was still snuggling up to Law's leg. He crouched down above him before reaching out to shake him awake. The movement didn't seem to be working with waking him up. It was a little frustrating.

"Straw Hat-ya, wake up. Dinner's ready," he spoke in a loud voice. He hoped that Luffy was able to hear him.

The guy groaned before sitting up. He released his leg before rubbing his eyes. "What? What's going on?"

Law wanted to laugh at how he looked. To him, the man looked like a child that just woke up from his nap. He smiled at how cute he was. His eyes widened. _Did I just think that Straw Hat-ya's cute? What?_ Shaking his head to clear his mind, he repeated what he had told him before. "Dinner's ready. Let's go eat."

That made him perk up immediately. "Food!" he shouted before shooting up. Law didn't have time to react before his arm was grabbed and he was practically dragged to the kitchen.

Inside the room, the crew and he dug into the dinner that Sanji made. Once again, Law ate at least three helpings. The others seemed to be getting used to him eating so much. Luffy appeared to be doing better than before. Law thought it was better than his depressed self from earlier that day.

After dinner, Law was full and tired. He got up and started to go back to his room. "Torao," Luffy called to hi as he, suddenly, showed up next to him. "Where're you going?" He matched his speed and walked right next to him.

"I'm going to get some clothes then go take a bath," Law informed him.

"Can I join you?"

Law's eyes widened. Panic started to grip him at the thought of bathing with the other. "N-No. You can't." Luffy gave him a confused and concerned look.

"Why? Is something wrong?"

"I just... want to bathe alone." The guy looked upset at his answer. It was as if Law had denied him a whole barrel of meat.

"Torao, is there something going on?"

"It's nothing. I... I'll bathe with you tomorrow, alright?" It was a rash decision to make, but if it kept Luffy of his back about it for the time being, he would do it.

Luffy frowned. "Okay. Can I, at least, stay in your room until you come back?" he asked, crossing his arms as they walked.

"I don't mind." The man's frown turned into a big smile. It was uplifting to see him smile. Law hated seeing him frown, get angry, or get upset. It hurt him more than it should've for some reason.

Once they were in the room, Law grabbed some clothes before leaving the room to go bathe. _I haven't done it in a few days. It's kinda gross to not bathe for so long._ He passed by the girls and nodded at them. They did the same back before going to their room.

In the bathroom, Law set his clothes down. Standing in front of the mirror, he began to slowly take his shirt off. Once it was off, he dropped the dirty shirt on the floor. For a bit, Law just stared at his chest, arms, and stomach.

"That bastard," he growled out. "How the fuck could he do this to me? 'Loves me', my ass."

What he was talking about were the scars all across his arms, chest, and stomach. Tears of frustration gathered in his eyes but never fell. Some scars were longer than others while some had been deeper than some others. Just staring at them made him remember the excruciating pain of each and every one when they were inflicted.

After a few minutes, he had to look away. It was just too much for him to handle. Taking his pants off, Law could see the scars that were across his legs as well. All the scars he had were from Kid. That day, the man didn't spare him any mercy. He went all out on him, just because he refused him.

Taking his underwear off, Law ran a bath. When it was full, he cut it off before stepping in. Law sat down and allowed the water to cover him up to his shoulders. His energy began to be drained from him but he didn't mind.

Sighing, he leaned back and began to think about how their 'experiment' that day had gone. He frowned. The way Luffy reacted was devastating. "I don't know if I can continue to go through with this plan," he said aloud.

"Are you going to back out on us, Law?" Law snapped his head up to see who had come in.

He almost screamed in shock when he found Zoro standing in the middle of the doorway. "Haven't you ever heard of knocking?!" he screamed at him. Law dunked his body further into the tub. "Why're you in here?!"

"I came to take a bath." He shrugged. "Didn't realize you were in here." Law moved away from the edge of the tub. "Is there a reason you're hiding in the water?"

"I want my privacy," Law answered. He had the water all the way up to his chin now. "I'll be done soon. Please, just... go wait somewhere else."

Zoro sighed. "Fine. I'm going." Law thanked him as he left the room. He had been shocked that the man had almost seen what he had been hiding from people for a very long time.

Finishing his bath, he quickly dried off and dressed. He had picked out a dark blue, long-sleeved shirt, solid dark gray pants, and dark purple underwear. Law had left his shoes and stuff in his room. He didn't care to wear them around the ship.

Leaving the room, Zoro was sitting on the floor right outside the room. "Zoro-ya." The man looked up at him. "I'm done now. The bath's free for you to use." The man thanked him before entering. Law rolled his eyes as he grabbed his dirty clothes before heading back to his room.

Arriving back at his room, Law found Luffy sleeping in his bed. He didn't mind and just put his clothes on the floor near the door. Getting in the bed, he pushed Luffy a bit over because he was sprawled all over the bed.

Laying down with a heavy sigh, he began to fall asleep. He hoped that the next day wouldn't be as bad as it had been that day. It hurt him a lot to see how Luffy took his disappearance. _I really don't want to keep this up, but I promised the crew that I would._

...

Law woke up to someone snuggling up to him. Opening his eyes, he found Luffy almost on top of him. He woke up a bit more before, lazily, pushing at Luffy's face. It didn't wake him up, but it did get him off of him.

Once he was free from the clingy man, he sat up while scratching his head. After a moment of just sitting there, he got out of the bed and trudged to the door. He left and made his way to the kitchen. It wasn't surprising to find that nobody was walking through the halls.

In the kitchen, he wasn't surprised to find the whole crew in there. But they seemed to be waiting for him. "Good morning, Torao-kun," Robin greeted him. He sat down before laying his head on the table.

"Morning," he replied in a still slightly groggy voice.

"Law, is something wrong with you?" Nami asked.

The question made him lift his head. "No. Why do you ask?" All eight shared a look between each other.

"Zoro told us that something was up with you," Usopp voiced. Law looked at the green-haired man.

"I told you last night that I was fine. There's nothing going on." They all gave him skeptical looks.

"Torao-san, if there's something wrong, we might be able to help," Brook tried to get him to listen.

Getting angry, Law stood from the table. "I'm perfectly fine!" he yelled. He knew that they meant well, but he didn't want to bother them with his problem.

"Then why were you hiding in the tub?!" Zoro hollered back at him.

Knowing he would regret it later but wanted them to get off his back and leave him alone, Law let his anger get the better of him. "Fine! You want to see that I'm fine?!" Grabbing the ends of his shirt, he ripped it off. "There! See?! I'm fine! I just wanted some Goddamn privacy! Is that too much to fucking as for?!"

Everyone looked shocked. He huffed as he glanced around at them. Law knew what they were staring at. "L-Law, what... what happened to you?" Chopper asked. He just replaced his shirt.

"Remember when I told you that I had an accident?" They all nodded. "That's what happened." He huffed as he sat back down. "I don't like for people to see them," he confessed. He glared down at the table when he remembered the very last words of the man he used to call an ally.

"Are you going to be okay?" Franky asked.

"Yeah. I'll be fine." He remembered Luffy. "Don't tell Straw Hat-ya. I don't need for him to freak out and bombard me with questions about them." The crew agreed. "Thanks. I really appreciate it."

After that, they went about their day. Luffy woke up and joined him in the kitchen. Sanji cooked while Luffy and Law talked about what they were going to do that day. Sanji gave some suggestions. Luffy accepted them, but Law could tell that he didn't care for his input.

"Where the fuck is that little shit?!" A roar interrupted their peaceful atmosphere. Law froze up at hearing that voice. _Oh fuck. This is not fucking happening._ "Tell me where he is!"

Getting up, Law rushed to the door before opening it. His fears had been confirmed when he saw who was on the deck of the Sunny. The ship right next to theirs was also a dead giveaway. "Why are you here?" Zoro asked. Law could tell that he was itching to draw his swords and attack him.

"Where the fuck is your poor excuse for a Captain?!" Kid shouted at him as he towered over the man.

Luffy showed up right next to Law. "Get off my ship," he spoke in a cold, deadly tone. It made a shiver of fear run down his spine.

"You!" Kid shouted as he came storming up to him. "I'm here to finish what we started on the island the other day!" He was right in Luffy's face. It was as if he hadn't even noticed that Law was standing there. What shocked him was how calm Luffy was acting.

"We were done. I won. You lost. Now, get the fuck off my ship before I make you," Luffy replied in a growl.

Deciding to step in to keep a fight from breaking out, Law got between them by standing in front of Luffy. "Get lost," he spat in his face.

Kid seemed surprised at seeing him. "Who the fuck are you? You look familiar." Law started to sweat bullets but powered through his fear.

"I'm a friend of the Straw Hats. No, he said to get off his ship." He glared at him. Law was scared to death to face-off against him again. "Get off or **I** will be the one to do so."

Something seemed to click in the younger man's mind. His eyes widened before a malicious grin spread across his face. "Law, you look different. What happened to you?"

Law froze up at his question. He was beyond terrified. Kid found out who he was. "Get off my fucking ship!" Luffy shouted at him from behind Law.

The man glared at Luffy over Law's shoulder. "Shut up, fuck-face. I have a bone to pick with Law." He turned his attention back to Law. "So, have you decided on your answer to my offer?"

Swallowing a large lump in his throat, he took a deep breath before answering him. "My answer still remains as before. No. I refuse your offer."

Kid's grin quickly turned to a deep frown. "Don't you remember what my warning was when I left that day?"

"Of course, I do. I still stand, though. I will not nor never will I ever accept your offer." Kid roared before going to grab him. Law just closed his eyes.

He never felt the man touch him, though. Opening his eyes, he was shocked to find Luffy standing in front of him. He was holding Kid's hand that was balled into a fist. "Get off my ship," Luffy demanded once again. "You will not touch Torao, my crewmates, nor anything else on my ship. Ever." Law was dumbfounded at how Luffy sounded. It was as if he was a fully-grown man instead of his normal self. "If you so much as even look back at this ship when you're back on yours, I'll throw you into the sea and sink your ship."

Luffy released his hand, still glaring at him. Kid, reluctantly, walked away from them. He turned back to look at Law one last time before getting back onto his ship. "Come on, Killer. We're leaving."

After a few minutes, Kid's ship left from next to theirs. Law was thankful for the other leaving him alone. The whole crew watched as the ship passed by theirs and got further and further away from them.

"Torao, are you okay?" Luffy asked. Law turned his attention from the ship in the distance to him.

"Of course. Why do you ask?" He raised an eyebrow at him.

"Because," Luffy pointed at his body, "you're shaking."

Eyes widening, Law realized that, yes, he was still shaking where he stood. "Don't worry about it. I'll stop in a bit." Luffy, reluctantly, left the matter alone. "You said you wanted to learn how to play chess, right?" The Straw Hat Captain nodded. "Then, come on. I'll teach you how to play."

Luffy bound after him as he walked back inside. He sighed. _I hope that will be the last time I ever see Eustass-ya. If the others find out..._ Fear filled him at the thoughts of what the crew would do if they ever found out the truth about his scars. Especially Luffy. He was the last person he wanted to find out about what happened between him and Kid.

**I'm so happy that you all are enjoying the story. Let me know how I did on this chapter. Have a magickal day. I love you all soooo much. Tatty-bye!**

**Fun Facts:**

**1\. People used to say "prunes" instead of "cheese" when having their pictures taken.**

**2\. In the Philippines, McDonald's serves spaghetti.**

**3\. Dunce caps used to be signs of intelligence.**

**4\. Adolf Hitler was nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize.**


	6. Over a Game of Chess

**Over a Game of Chess**

The crew didn't hide Law that day. They had told him that Kid's actions had upset Luffy enough for that day. They didn't want to make it worse on him by hiding Law again. He had agreed that it wasn't a good idea at all to do so that day. 

So, he taught Luffy how to play chest instead after the encounter with the other Captain. It had been a little frustrating since Luffy wasn't all that bright and didn't get it at all at first. But he was patient with him and showed him, politely, how to do it. 

After a few hours, Luffy got the game down pat so they played against each other. It was fun and Law won a lot of the matches. There were a few times that Luffy got lucky and won. It frustrated the other every time Law won. Luffy hated losing to others. 

"Why do you hate losing so much?" Law asked him after he won against the other once again. Luffy was pouting off to the side. 

"Because it means that I'm weak. I'm not weak, so I don't like to lose," Luffy answered. He was still upset about his latest defeat. Law thought it was funny because he was acting like a child. 

Law set the board back up for another round. "It doesn't mean you're weak if you lose. It just means that you need to reevaluate your approach to the problem. Just because you lose against someone doesn't mean you need to get stronger. You just need to go at it in a different way." 

"You mean like how I defeated Doflamingo?" Law was shocked to hear him asking something like that. It was not something he had been expecting the other to ask. 

"What do you mean? Can you explain it to me?" 

"Well, I couldn't defeat him with Second nor Third Gear. So, I used Fourth Gear." Law nodded in agreement, seeing where he was going with his explanation. "I used Kong Gun but that didn't do anything. So, I used King Kong Gun and that worked." 

"I see. That's a good example," Law started. "You couldn't defeat him one way, so you tried a different approach and defeated him. It wasn't because you were weak. You just needed to attack the problem at a different angle." Luffy looked confused. Law sighed, deeply. "You do understand what I'm talking about, right?" 

"Yeah, I do." The way he answered made him doubt that he was telling him the truth. He chose not to ask nor bother him about his answer. "So, how did you become so good at chess?" 

"I played it a lot as I grew up. Along with studying to become a doctor, I learned to play chess and other logic games. They're fun and I like to compete against people." Law had played chess and checkers a lot with his sister when he was little. He would always win against her. 

Those were times he missed his sister. She would never get angry, pout, nor cry if he won. Lami would just smile and laugh before suggesting to play another game. He thought that it was a good thing that she never got angry or upset because he won, and she lost. 

"Where're you from? I've never heard anything about the place you're from. Was it cool? Or boring? Can we go there someday?" Law almost froze up at the questions that were thrown at him. They were innocent but he couldn't help but feel sad about remembering his hometown. 

"I'm from Flevance. It was considered the White City." 

"That sounds cool! Was everything white?" 

"Yes. The streets, buildings, lampposts, and sculptures were all white. It was a beautiful sight if you came to visit," he said it all with a smile. "We had festivals all the time to celebrate our town. It was fun." His smile quickly disappeared as he remembered what happened to it. 

"You say 'was'. What happened? Can't we go visit it?" 

"No. you can't visit it," Law answered as he stared at the chessboard. "The town no longer exists. It hasn't been there for seventeen years now. It was destroyed when I was ten." 

"Torao, what happened? Why did it get destroyed? Is there a reason that this happened?" 

"I can answer that for you if Torao-kun won't." Robin's voice made him snap his head to look at the woman. She was leaning on the doorframe to the room. They were in the library of the ship. 

"You know the reason that the town no longer exists?" Law questioned her. He knew that she was always on the hunt for knowledge. There was a very big possibility that she would know the Government's side of the story. He didn't know if she knew the truth. 

"There's a book about it, is there not?" Law nodded. He knew all about the book that was written about his hometown. He found Doflamingo reading it almost all the time when he wasn't doing other things. "I've read it and heard the rumors about what happened to it." 

"Tell me what you know about it." 

"From the book, Flevance was a town straight out of a snowy fairytale. It was the most beautiful place in the whole world that you could ever visit. I would've loved to visit it." She walked in and sat down near them. "From the rumors I've heard over the years, they said that there had been a contagious disease that spread through the town and country. It would turn your skin white and slowly kill you. Everyone in the country was said to have it." 

"The Amber Lead Syndrome," Law informed her and Luffy. "It was never contagious, but everyone in the town did have it. It was a hereditary disease." 

Luffy gasped. "That means you have it?" 

"No. Not anymore. I cured myself of it." Robin looked interested in what he was talking about. "I was doomed to die at the age of thirteen." 

"Yet, you're still here. What changed your destiny?" Robin asked. Law smiled a little. 

"A friend of mine helped me with it. He gave me the devil fruit I have." He remembered the moment he got it. Cora-san force-fed me my own devil fruit. Great way to get one. "He told me that I would be able to cure myself with it if I ate it. He was right. I was able to get the poisonous lead out of my system before it could kill me." 

Luffy was smiling at him. "That's good. You were able to help yourself." 

"Yes." He looked at Robin. "What you've heard is only the things that the Government wanted the world to know," Law said to her. "They lied to the children before killing them." Luffy looked surprised, horrified, and down-right pissed off to hear that. "I'm the sole survivor from the White City." 

"Amazing." Robin looked even more interested in his past now. "I'm the sole survivor of my country as well," she commented. "It's fascinating to find someone that shares my experience." 

"Maybe we can talk about our homes sometime. I would like to know why your country was destroyed." Law was being honest with her. He wanted to know the name of it and why the whole country was annihilated. The reason for his was already revealed. Now, he wanted to know hers. 

"That would be great for storytime." She smiled at him. "Maybe later, after dinner. We can tell the rest of the crew about our old homes." Law agreed that it was a good idea. He would be willing to give details about Flevance if she was willing to tell about her home country. 

After their small conversation, Robin left them to get back to their game of chess. "You won't beat me this time," Luffy said with a grin. 

"Oh really? You think you can beat me this time?" Law asked. He smirked at the other's confidence for their impending game. 

"I know I can." He was still grinning like an idiot. 

"I highly doubt it." With those last words, their hundredth game started. 

It was intense because they both were trying to beat each other. It was a little stressful because Luffy had gotten pretty good at the game. Law was trying his hardest to make the right moves and watching for Luffy's moves. To him, he wanted to show the kid that he was the one that was the best at chess. 

After a bit, Law grinned as he placed his king down. "Checkmate. I win." Luffy looked shocked. 

"Wha... How...?" He thought that the other's expression was hilarious because of how perplexed he looked. Slowly, Luffy took on the expression of pouting again. "I can't believe you beat me again. That's unfair." 

"The longer you play it, the better you'll get. It's just how practice works," Law replied as he started to put the board away. It was getting to the point that he thought that Luffy's pouting was cute. Eyes widening, he realized what he had just thought. _What? He can't be cute. He's my friend and a guy. There's no way I can think he's cute._ He shook his head to get those thoughts out of it. 

"Torao, what do you want to do now?" 

Law looked back at him. He was relaxing on the chair. His legs were thrown over one arm while he laid over the other arm. "Why? Are you bored now?" he asked. 

"Sort of. Not really. Just being with you is fun." 

"How? We never really got along when I was with you and your crew." This made Law curious. "You and I always have something to argue about. Why would being around me but fun if we couldn't agree on almost everything we talked about?" 

Luffy looked to be thinking about that. Law finished putting the game away before sitting back in his chair across from Luffy. The other seemed to be thinking deeply about the question he gave him. That was new to Law. It surprised him a little bit because he was thinking about something other than food, adventure, and friendship. 

"Because... Because I just like you. You're really smart like Robin but get angry like Sanji and Zoro." Luffy chuckled. "We're almost just like them." 

Rolling his eyes, Law stood up and walked over to Luffy. "Not really. I know when to stop arguing and fighting and just walk away when things aren't going my way." He reached down and ruffled the other's hair. Luffy wasn't wearing his hat at the time. It was laying on the table. "They don't know when to stop bickering because they get to the point of almost destroying the ship." Luffy laughed as he pushed Law's hand away from him. 

"Fine. We're more like best friends. They argue." 

"Your right. We're very similar to best friends." Law had to hand it to him. He could figure some things out pretty quickly. That was a good trait for him. But he wasn't always on the right path with his guesses. This time, he was on the right path. 

Luffy grinned up at him. "I like being your friend," he admitted. "You're really nice, even though you're mean most of the time." Law rolled his eyes before going to sit back down. "You just don't know how to express your feelings right." 

"I can. I just don't choose to." 

"Why? Wouldn't that help you with people more? Everyone seems to be scared of you or nervous." It was true. Most people either ran away from him when they saw him or cowered away. It was because of his actions throughout his time as a Pirate. 

"I know. It would help me with people better, but it's just how I am." He sighed. Law knew that Luffy would ask him about his personality. It was mainly due to what happened to his hometown. Not really anyone but the Government's fault. "What do you want to do now?" Law asked, changing the subject off of himself. 

"I don't know. Dinner'll be ready later." Luffy started to lounge in the chair by kicking his feet up on the arm and leaning his head on the other. "We could go fishing. Sanji said that he wanted some more fish." 

"Well then, let's go. If it keeps you from looking so depressed, we'll go fishing." Luffy glared at him before it turned into a bright smile. 

"Great!" He hopped off the chair before grabbing Law by the arm. The doctor was dragged out the room by his arm. He hoped that Luffy wouldn't rip it off his body with how much he was tugging him. The thought made him laugh to himself. Luffy would be devastated if he lost another arm. 

**Hope you all liked it. Let me know if you did. Are you all having a good day? If you aren't, I have a poem for you all below. It cheers me up when I have bad days. Try to have a great day. I love you all. Tatty-bye!**

**Instructions for a Bad Day - Shane Koycan**

_**There will be bad days.** _   
_**Be calm. Loosen your grip, opening each palm slowly now. Let go.** _   
_**Be confident.** _   
_**Know that now is only a moment, and if today is as bad as it gets, understand that by tomorrow, today will have ended.** _   
_**Be gracious. Accept each extended hand offered, to pull you back from the somewhere you cannot escape.** _   
_**Be diligent. Scrape the gray sky clean. Realize every dark cloud is a smokescreen meant to blind us from the truth, and the truth is whether we see it or not - the sun and moon are still there and always there is light.** _   
_**Be forthright. Despite your instinct to say "It's alright, I'm okay" -** _   
_**Be honest. Say how you feel without fear or guilt, without remorse or complexity.** _   
_**Be lucid in your explanation, be sterling in your oppose.** _   
_**If you think for one second no one knows what you've been going through; be accepting of the fact that you are wrong, that the long drawn and heavy breaths of despair have at times been felt by everyone - that pain is part of the human condition and that alone makes you a legion.** _   
_**We hungry underdogs, we risers with dawn, we dismissers of odds, we blessers of on - we will station ourselves to the calm. We will hold ourselves to the steady, be ready player one.** _   
_**Life is going to come at you armed with hard times and tough choices, your voice is your weapon, your thoughts ammunition - there are no free extra men, be aware that as the instant now passes it exists now as then.** _   
_**Remember the times you could've pressed quit - but you hit continue.** _   
_**Be forgiving. Living with the burden of anger is not living.** _   
_**Giving your focus to wrath will leave your entire self absent of what you need. Love and hate are beasts and the one that grows it the one you feed.** _   
_**Be persistent. Be the weed growing through the cracks in the cement, beautiful - because it doesn't know it's not supposed to grow there.** _   
_**Be resolute. Declare what you accept as true in a way that envisions the resolve with which you accept it.** _   
_**If you're having a good day, be considerate. A simple smile could be the first-aid kid that someone has been looking for.** _   
_**If you believe with absolute honesty that you are doing everything you can - do more.** _   
_**There will be bad days, Times when the world weighs on you for so long that it leaves you looking for an easy way out.** _   
_**There will be moments when the drought of joy seems unending.** _   
_**Instances spent pretending that everything is alright when it clearly is not.** _   
_**Check your blind spot. See that love is still there, be patient. Every nightmare has a beginning, but every bad day has an end.** _   
_**Ignore what others have called you. I'm calling you** _ **FRIEND** _**.** _   
_**Make us comprehend the urgency of your crisis. Silence left to its own devices, breeds silence.** _   
_**So speak and be heard.** _   
_**One word after the next, express yourself and put your life in the context - if you find that no one is listening, be loud.** _   
_**Make noise.** _   
_**Stand in poise and be open.** _   
_**Hope in these situations is not enough and you will need someone to lean on. In the unlikely event that you have no one, look again. Everyone is blessed with the ability to listen. The deaf will hear you with their eyes. The blind will see you with their hands.** _   
_**Let your heart fill their news-stands, Let them read all about it.** _   
_**Admit to the bad days, the impossible nights.** _   
_**Listen to the insights of those who have been there, but have come back. They will tell you; you can stack a misery, you can pack despair, you can even wear your sorrow - but come tomorrow you must change your clothes.** _   
_**That when someone asks you how was your day, realize that for some of us - it's the only way we know how to say, be calm.** _   
_**Loosen your grip, opening each palm, slowly now - Let Go.** _


	7. Attacked at Night

**Attacked at Night**

Yawning, Law awoke from his restful, peaceful sleep. His throat was dry, and it was irritating him. Moving just a bit, he realized that Luffy was wrapped around him. Again. It was a little frustrating to him, but he understood that the guy was really clingy.

Sitting up, he removed Luffy's arms and legs from around his body before throwing his own legs off the side of the bed. Once he deemed himself awake enough to know he wouldn't fall over just by standing up, Law got up and walked to the door.

There were a few faint thuds from somewhere on the ship as he went to open the door. He stopped just before pulling the door open. _Huh?_ _What the fuck was that?_ Narrowing his eyes, Law listened for it again, feeling that something wasn't right. Nothing happened for a while.

Cautiously, Law opened the door. Poking his head out, he glanced around but found nothing. The hallway was completely empty, and nothing seemed out of place. _Huh. Might just be my imagination. I could just be hearing things from being on the ship for so long. Probably nothing to worry about._

Choosing to ignore the sounds he heard, Law, quietly, made his way to the kitchen. He didn't want to wake the others up. Once inside the kitchen, he stepped around the traps set out for Luffy and got to the sink. Law poured himself a cup of water before downing it in one go.

His throat hurt from how dry it was, but the water soothed it. He couldn't remember the last time it felt like he swallowed a mouth full of sand. It wasn't a pleasant feeling because it made his mouth taste like dirt and sand and his tongue feel as if he rubbed it raw on a piece of sandpaper. It was refreshing to wet it again.

Suddenly, there was a loud thud above him. Law knew it was coming from the bathroom. It was the only room above the kitchen. It was odd. He didn't see anyone else up. Getting another cup of water, he downed it before rising the cup and putting it back up.

Law, cautiously, made his way to the ladder to go upstairs. As slowly as he could, he climbed it before sticking his head up to look around. He didn't see anything out of the ordinary, but a feeling of unease came over him like a wave.

 _Something's not right here. Who's on the ship? It can't be one of Straw Hat-ya's crew members. That was too heavy of steps to be any of them. Even Robo-ya walks lighter than that._ Law pulled himself into the room that was before the room that held the bathtub and shower.

Another thud on the other side of the door made him realize that someone was definitely on the ship. Slowly, Law reached out and grabbed the handle. The knob turned and he, tentatively, opened the door. It creaked as he opened it.

When the door was open, he couldn't see anything at first. The room was almost pitch black, but he knew tha someone was there. Fear gripped him at the scent that permeated the air. It was the smell of blood, iron, and gunpowder. _No! I thought he left! Oh, God! I need to get out of here!_

As he turned back around to leave, a hand grabbed the back of his shirt before he could get away. "Where do you think you're going?" Kid said right in his left ear. His breath ghosted over the shell of his ear. Law's eyes widened at the sound of his voice. "You thought I'd give up on you?"

"I knew you wouldn't," Law retorted. He was trying not to let the other know terrified he actually was at the moment. Law knew he'd use that against him if he showed him that.

"Still cocky as ever, I see." A lick was made up his cheek. Law had to hold back the shudder of disgust at the feeling of it. "You look so different. You're much younger looking than when I last saw you." Law bit the inside of his cheek. "You never answered me. What happened? Who did it to you?"

Getting even more nervous, Law decided to tell him. "Bonney-ya changed me," he said.

"Of course. I should've guessed that it'd be that woman." He was pulled into the room and the door was shut after him. "I guess that I should thank her."

"Why?" Law asked as the light was turned on. He had to shield his eyes from the sudden invasion of light in his eyes. Kid had let him go as soon as he had yanked him into the room.

"A younger body means you're tighter." Kid's words made Law realize why he was there. Now, he understood why the guy would risk waking up the others. He was going to rape him.

"Eustass-ya, why would you do that to me?" he asked as he moved away from him. There wasn't really anywhere for him to go. It was a kind of bad place to be trapped in with the guy. Law was scared of what the other was going to do to him.

"I told you before what I was going to do if your answer was the same and not what I wanted, right?" Kid questioned as he moved closer to him. Law was backed up against the wall as Kid cornered him. He had nowhere else to go.

"Yes. But if you really do love me, you wouldn't do it," Law countered. He was trying to get the other not to rape him. It would get him in an enormous amount of trouble if Luffy found out what he did to him. 

"I want to have you before anyone else gets the chance to." He pinned Law to the wall. Law tried to struggle out of his grip and was able to for a second. As he ducked under the larger man's arms, he tried to get around him to the door.

Without warning, Kid punched him in his side. Law gasped at the sudden pain as he went crashing onto the floor. He groaned loudly as he held onto his side that was hit. Tears gathered in his eyes when he realized that Kid was willing to harm him even more just to get what he wanted from him.

"Don't try that shit again. Also..." He crouched down beside him. "Don't make too much noise. You'll wake the others up. You don't want them to see you like this, right?"

Turning his head to the side, Law glared at him. He bared his teeth at him. Law knew that Kid was using his weakness against him. He hated for people to see him helpless and weak. It wasn't something he was keen on others seeing from him. It was highly embarrassing and brought back memories that he wanted to bury, store away, and burn.

Lifting his hand, Law went to make a Room. Kid seemed to understand what he was about to do. "I don't think so, Trafalgar." Before he could move away from him or do anything, that same necklace from a year ago was placed around his neck.

The sudden weakness in his limbs made Law fall onto the ground again with a loud thud. He knew that he needed someone to come help him. Now. There was no way in hell he'd be able to fight Kid off by himself in this condition.

"There. Now, you can't do much."

"I... hate... you," Law gasped out. He knew it pissed Kid off to hear that, but he said it, nonetheless. It was something he wanted him to know and realize. Law would never love him. There was no way he could ever love such a brash, harsh, cruel, evil bastard like him. He was almost as horrible as Doflamingo was.

He saw anger cross his face. The guy stood up and kicked him in the same hurt side. Law yelped as pain exploded in his side. Another kick made him curl up from the pain that invaded his senses. He couldn't help it.

After a minute, the abuse stopped. Law was holding back tears as he twitched from the agony given to him by the man that claimed he loved him. Kid crouched down next to him, grinning. "Now, you're not going to give me any more of a hard time, are you?" he asked.

Law lifted his head up. He mustered enough energy to spit at him. It landed on his cheek. "Go to... hell... bastard," he grunted out, holding onto his probably bruised side. He already knew that Kid was going to do more by the time he was done with him.

Kid bared his teeth in a snarl. "Fine. You wanna go that route? We'll do it that way." A punched was aimed at the middle of his back. It sent Law sprawling back onto the floor. He hit the ground and it produced another loud noise.

Getting an idea, Law knew how to get the others to wake up and come save him. _If... If I bang on the floor... it... it should get the others'... attention._ Another punch landed on the top of his back. It hurt so much because he was being beaten up and he was being weighed down by the sea stone.

After about five minutes of the assault, Law was twitching as he laid on the ground. He was battered and hurting all over from the beating he endured. He knew that they would leave bruises on him. Kid was huffing, crouched over him.

"I don't know why you just can't cooperate with me," he said. Law looked out the corner of his eye at him. "I don't want to do this to you, but you leave me very few choices to go with."

Law gave a hollow laugh followed by coughing. His body throbbed with pain. "If you... really do love... love me, you would... wouldn't do th-this to... me." He lifted his head again before falling back onto the floor. It smacked off the tiles of the floor, making another loud noise in the otherwise quiet ship.

"I told you before, you left me with very few choices here." Law watched him move to be behind him. Knowing what was coming next, Law struggled to his hands and started to drag himself across the ground. He wouldn't go down without a fight. "You ain't going anywhere," Kid grunted as he grabbed the hem of his pants.

As he was dragged back across the tiles, Law started to pound on it. He couldn't shout for help but he could beat on it to get someone's, anyone's, attention. Law needed someone to come save him before Kid went too far.

"Stop that already," he growled at him before pulling his pants down. His underwear were still on but he knew he didn't have much time before the other man was able to do what he wanted to him. _Straw Hat-ya! Nami-ya! Zoro-ya! Anyone! Help me!_

A second later, Law heard people moving around below. He was relieved to know that they were up now. When his underwear were pulled down, he punched the floor again. It was taking a lot of energy out of him to do that, but he needed them to come help him. Now. Right now.

Suddenly, the door was thrown open. "What the hell's..." Law looked up to find Nami in the doorway. Her anger quickly changed to shock and horror. Law lifted his right leg before rearing it back. He kicked Kid in the gut. While he was distracted with that, he crawled his way over to her.

"N-Nami-ya..." he said her name in a broken, but relieved voice. He was so happy to see her. The woman's jaw was dropped as he wrapped his arms around her leg. He cuddled her leg as if the limb would save him.

"Nami, what's going on?" Luffy's voice sounded sleepy as he approached them.

As soon as Luffy was able to see into the room, Law knew that all hell was going to break loose at any moment. He was right when Luffy roared in fury. "I thought I told you never to come back here!" he shouted at him. The only things keeping him back from attacking the other were Nami and Law.

"This doesn't concern you, Straw Hat," Kid barked back. Law clung to Nami's leg. He wanted to get out of there.

"Nami, get Torao out of here!" he ordered her. Law knew that the two men were going to fight each other. "Get him to Chopper! Now!"

The woman didn't argue nor say anything back. She lifted Law up and pulled him away from the room. He watched as Luffy entered the room. He could hear the fight start. 

Nami guided him through the ship. He had to go slow because of the sea stone and his injured body. "Here." She raised her hands and took the necklace off of him.

The tiredness was gone but the soreness was still there and in full force. "Th-Thanks." Nami just nodded as she continued to help him to Chopper's room.

The guy was already waiting there for him. "What happened to him?" he asked as they walked through the door.

"He's beaten up," Nami said. She even helped him get his pants and underwear back on. He was embarrassed that she helped him do that.

Law sat on the bed before laying down. Chopper, quickly, made his way over to him before gasping. "It looks like he was attacked by a wild animal," he announced. Law wanted to laugh at his phrasing. Kid was just like a wild animal.

Law deiced to tell him about his side. "Can... Can you check my.... side?" he asked. "He... kicked me a few... times." Chopper nodded as he lifted his shirt up. Law heard the gasp as his side was exposed for both to see.

"Law, does anything feel broken?" Nami asked. He was surprised that she asked him.

"It... doesn't feel like anything... is," he answered.

"Law, this bruise is really bad. It's already turning purple and black," Chopper informed him. That didn't sound too good. He knew it was going to be bad. "And you've got a lot of other bruises on your body. What happened?

He looked away from them. "He... beat me," Law choked out. He was on the verge of tears because they were seeing him in such a weakened state. It was something he never wanted anyone to see. Not even his crew. Especially his own crew.

"I can't do much since they're only bruises, but I have some cream to put on them. It should help with the pain along with some medicine." Law nodded as Chopper went to get what he needed. He sat up and removed his shirt. Nami sat there, wide-eyed. He knew she was looking at his bruises.

After a bit, Chopper was done with applying the ointment and gave him a pill for the pain. He was feeling a little better but not a lot. His pride had been damaged quite severely. It was something he never wanted to lose.

Suddenly, the door was opened. Luffy stood in the doorway. He was, also, battered a bit. His expression said that he won, though. "He shouldn't come around here anymore," Luffy said as he entered.

Chopper, immediately, started tending to him. Law couldn't look at any of them. Luffy's crew already knew about his scars. Now, Luffy could see them clear as day. They probably already guessed where he got them from now.

"Torao." He turned to Luffy, head down. "Are you okay?"

"I'll be fine," he answered. Law knew that it wasn't the reply that Luffy wanted to hear. He wanted to know what happened.

"Law, where, exactly, did you get those scars?" Nami asked. He knew she would ask. It was something he'd been waiting for.

"E-Eu..." He turned his head away again. "Eustass-ya." The whole room went silent at his admittance. Law felt uncomfortable because he could feel them staring at him. Their eyes were burning holes into his body.

"I'll kill him," Luffy growled out.

"Don't. You've done enough," Law countered. He replaced his shirt before standing up. "I'm going back to bed."

As he left, Luffy followed. Chopper had finished treating his Captain a moment before. Back int he room, Luffy got back in bed with him. Law was thankful to have the crew around, but he didn't think he'd be able to handle something like that on his own again.

"Torao, are you sure you're okay?" Luffy asked again as he cuddled him, being careful not to hurt him more. Law turned over and placed his face into Luffy's chest.

Breathing in the scent of Luffy, Law sighed. "Yes. I'll be fine. I'll just be sore for a while. Don't worry too much about it." Luffy said something else but it was lost to him as he went back to sleep. The pain had subsided enough for him to be able to fall back asleep.

**I'm really, really sorry about not updating in a while. This chapter went very differently than I thought it would. Again, I'm sorry about not updating for a while. Please, forgive me. I hope you all are having a great day and I love you so, so much. Tatty-bye!**

**Fun Facts:**

**1\. Bees actually have knees. The expression comes from the fact that they store large build-ups of pollen in hairy baskets on their knees.**

**2\. Between North and South Korea lies 155 miles of no man's land where hundreds of rare animal species thrive.**

**3\. While watching a Merry-Go-Round from a bench in Griffith Park, Los Angeles, Walt Disney was struck with inspiration for the creation of Disneyland.**

**4\. There is a Scottish tartan designed for Mars exploration. It was officially registered in 2016 to be worn during Mars science, exploration, and outreach activities.**


	8. Second Time and Revelation

**Second Time and Revelation**

The next morning wasn't so bad. When Law woke up, the crew seemed a little more friendly and caring about his state. Even Sanji and Zoro weren't fighting like usual. He guessed that it was to keep him from being bothered. Law appreciated it.

Like the past couple of days, Law woke up before Luffy and met the crew in the kitchen. Sanji was preparing breakfast while the others went around doing what the wanted. He winced as he sat at the table.

"Torao-kun, how are you feeling today? Are you okay?" Robin asked. The others seemed to be waiting for his answer to her.

"Other than it still hurts like a bitch to move around too much because of the bruises, I'm fine," he answered. Law laid his head on the table. His side still hurt him a lot because of how it was bruised and how bad it was.

"I guess that's better than nothing," Usopp said. He seemed nervous around him. "Law, what happened last night? We just heard a lot of banging before Nami came rushing from the bathroom with you. You looked horrible."

Law turned his face away from them. "Nothing important. You don't need to worry about it anymore. It's in the past now. No need to dwell on it." He didn't want to tell them what Kid was planning to do while he was there. Law had, already, guessed that Nami figured it out when she saw him. Even Luffy probably knew.

"If you don't want to talk about it, Torao-san, we won't pressure you on it. But we will be watching over you for now. Just in case you need our help," Brook relayed to him. Law nodded. He understood their concern for him. It wasn't every day that someone on the ship was attacked the way he was.

"Are you ready to 'disappear' today, Law?" Nami asked. She seemed guilty about asking that question. He didn't put it past her. The last time they made him go 'missing', Luffy cried himself to sleep on the deck after Law was gone for a little more than an hour.

"As ready as I can be," he replied, honestly. He didn't really feel too up for doing this. But if it helped the others understand their Captain a little more, he was willing to do it.

"I think that's a reasonable enough answer," Franky said. He was drinking a bottle of cola as he sat at the table with him. Law was fine with that.

Lifting his head up, Law saw that Sanji was finishing up. "I'm going to wake Straw Hat-ya up." The others nodded as he stood from the table. He was happy that they weren't bothering him anymore about the night before/

On his walk back to the bedroom where Luffy was, Law thought about how the day was going to go. _I wonder where they're going to hide me this time. That's a good question to ask them. I might do that when I get back and Straw Hat-ya isn't paying attention. Will it be on the deck? Or somewhere else on the ship? I guess I'll figure that out when the time comes._

Walking into the room, he almost laughed at how Luffy was in the bed. He was all over the bed and looked to still be in deep sleep. Law thought it was hilarious because he looked in total bliss even though he was only sleeping.

"Straw Hat-ya, it's time to wake up," he said as he shook him by the shoulder. Luffy mumbled something before rubbing his face into the bed more. "What was that? Speak up some more."

"Five more minutes," Luffy grumbled into the bed. He grabbed his arm before pulling him onto the bed. Law didn't even have time to react before he was being cuddled like a teddy bear. Luffy's face was pressed into his head. "Torao, you smell nice." Law's face lit up and his body was starting to hurt the more he was hugged. It wasn't too uncomfortable yet.

"It's time to get up," he repeated. "Black Leg-ya has breakfast ready." That seemed to wake the other up. His eyes opened before he shot into a sitting position, still clutching Law to his chest.

"Breakfast's ready?" Luffy asked. He sounded excited and more alert.

"Yeah. He told me to come wake you up." That wasn't true. Law told them he was going to wake him up for breakfast. Luffy released him before grabbing his arm. When that happened, he rushed off to the kitchen, dragging Law with him. He was careful of his bruises on his appendage this time.

Once they were in the kitchen, Luffy sat down with Law. The rest of the crew was still there, and the food was spread across the table. He could see the younger man's mouth water as he stared at the food. Sanji told them to dig in and that's exactly what Law did.

Law ate with them as if everything was normal. He could tell, though, that Luffy was tense around him. It was as if he was trying not to upset him. Law guessed it was from the night before. Luffy did attack Kid and saw him in such a weak position.

After breakfast, he spent some time with the other. He needed to do that before they decided to hide him. That was an important part of the plan. Even if the rest of the crew felt guilty for doing it, they were still going ahead. He knew that they wanted to figure out what was going on with their Captain.

After a few hours and lunch was over, Law was sitting on the deck with Luffy near the lion's head. They were talking about the past islands they visited. He learned, to his surprise, that Luffy had a few admirers as well on one of the last islands they visited before Law joined them. It was interesting because Luffy didn't seem interested in people like that.

After a while, Nami walked up to Luffy. "Luffy, Sanji wants to talk to you about something in the kitchen," she announced.

"Okay. Come on, Torao."

"No. Just you. Law should be fine on his own for now." The younger man looked disgruntled as he nodded. Law knew it was to get him alone and distract him so they could hide Law. The guy gave him a disappointed look before he followed Nami to the kitchen.

Robin and Usopp came up to him before pushing him behind the mast. As soon as Luffy entered the kitchen with Nami, they opened a compartment below him. "This is where one of the hidden spots are?" Law asked. He was skeptical about it.

"Yes. There's a place where you can sit down this time. Luffy shouldn't realize you're down there if you don't make too much noise," Usopp replied as he pushed him inside.

"Hurry. Luffy might come back at any moment. Sanji only wanted to talk about his preferences for dinner tonight," Robin voiced. Law nodded as he walked inside. There was a small room that held a seat and nothing more. "Try to keep quiet, Torao-kun. We don't want Luffy to know about the secret compartments until the experiment is over."

"I got it." The two smiled before shutting the latch. It was sort of dark and they didn't tell him where the spot was. Deciding to find it on his own, he felt around the ceiling to see if there was a slot for him to look out of.

As soon as he ran his fingers over a protruding piece, he pulled on it. That was what he was looking for. Sliding it open, a pair of binoculars fell out. Raising an eyebrow, he looked through and could see the deck from above him. He guessed that it was like a telescope because he could see everything on the deck. Sort of like when he was in the bathroom wall. A seat was right under it, so he sat down, still looking through the telescope-like thing.

Then, he heard Luffy and the other two's voices. "Can we have meat for dinner?" Luffy asked. Even though he couldn't see him, Law could still hear him.

"But what kind of meat do you want? Do you want sea monster meat, moose, or something else?" Sanji asked. He sounded calm if not a bit tense to Law. He guessed it was because he knew that Luffy didn't care what kind of meat he ate. It was more to get his attention in another direction.

"It doesn't really matter." He heard the other grumble something but couldn't make out what it was. "Sea monster meat sounds fine. I think Torao wouldn't mind it, either. I've never asked him if he likes it or not."

 _To be honest, I don't mind it. It tastes fine and I've had it on many occasions with my own crew. Bepo loves it and the others seem to enjoy it as well._ When they started speaking, he went back to listening to them.

"Alright. Law seems to be the kind of person not to argue about the kind of meat he eats. He might argue about other things, but meat isn't one he seems bothered about," Sanji commented. "I'll let you know when dinner's ready. I'm gonna soak the meat in some ingredients so it tastes better."

"Alright. I'm going back to the deck with Torao." Law cringed at that. _I'm not on the deck anymore, though. I hope he doesn't freak out like last time._

He heard the door open before it shut after him. He appeared in Law's sight. His back was to him, but he was quiet for a moment. Then, he started walking around. It was as if he was searching for him. After a moment, he saw the other's face. He looked confused and a little upset.

"What're you doing, Luffy-san?" Brook asked as he walked up. He had his violin in one hand while the other had his bow for it.

"Did you see where Torao went? I thought he'd be here when I got back." 

"Sorry, but I haven't. Maybe ask the others. Perhaps they saw him."

"Alright. Thanks, Brook." The skeleton nodded as he walked off, starting to play the instrument. Law saw that Luffy was getting frustrated. "Why does he keep disappearing? What's going on here? Maybe Robin can tell me."

Law's eyes widened at his comments to himself. _Shit. Straw Hat-ya's starting to get suspicious of us. What if he finds out before we can get enough information? It'll ruin the experiment and we won't know what's going on with him. This doesn't look good. That's a problem now._

Watching the younger Captain walk over to the older woman, he listened to what they were talking about. "Robin, have you seen Torao? I thought he'd still be near the head of the ship when I got back. But he's gone now. Have you seen him?"

"No, I haven't. Sorry to say that. Maybe he went to the library. Try checking there," she informed him. "You know he loves reading. Maybe he went to read some books while he waited for you to come back."

"Yeah. That could be the case." Law wanted to chuckle at the woman's lie. It was a very good one that she could make very convincing since he wasn't there at all. He knew it was because they had to keep his location from their own Captain. The other turned to walk away from her before turning back to her. "Also, is it me or did Torao disappear weirdly the other day? I know he went to the bathroom and all, but it was as if he wasn't even in there."

The woman gave him a really strained and anxious smile. "I think it's just your imagination. Sorry." Luffy nodded before walking away.

Law watched him walk into the cabin and could hear him moving to the library. He wished he could see him. The area only gave him a view of the deck. The good thing was that he could still hear him. That was a good point, he guessed. It was better to hear than not do anything at all.

When the other got to the room, Law could hear him. "Torao, are you in here?" he asked as he opened the door. Law could hear the sound of the henges as it creaked open. Luffy gave off a deep, defeated sounding sigh. "Where could he have gone? This is the only other place than the infirmary with Chopper. But I don't think he went to see him."

Law felt bad for him. _He sounds depressed and worried. It's as if I actually disappeared off the face of the Earth. That doesn't fit him at all. It's really sad to think about it and hear. I feel really guilty for doing this to him._ He closed his eyes as he continued to sit down. 

"Torao, where did you go? Why can't I find you? The others don't seem to realize you disappeared. Am I losing my mind?" Hearing that made him feel even worse. "I really did miss you. I missed arguing with you and talking to you and just spending time with you." Law felt as if he was hearing a heart to heart conversation the other man was having with himself. "The others might not realize it, but I figured it out. I love your company. I love... you."

He gasped. _Wh-What?! He... He loves me?! Is that why he's been acting that way about things I touched and spent a lot of time around? The crew might find that information very useful. I hope they don't think I'm lying._ Law couldn't even believe what he heard him say. That was a shocking revelation to find out.

After a while, Law never heard Luffy leave the room. It seemed that he fell asleep because Law could hear snoring. It wasn't long after that when the door above was opened up. He folded the thing back up before sliding the latch closed. When he was done with that, he exited the space he was put in.

When he was out, the whole crew was standing around him. "Did you find something out?" Sanji asked as he lit a cigarette. They all seemed to be waiting because they hadn't been able to hear him.

"Yeah. I definitely found something out," he responded as he closed the compartment behind himself.

"Well?" Usopp urged. Even Chopper was waiting for him to say something.

"I heard Straw Hat-ya talking about why he missed me," he started. The others cocked their heads to the side.

"Alright. That's interesting." It was Nami that spoke at that time. "Did you find out anything else? Like why he's acting the way he is. Also, we think he's onto us too."

"I believe so and I agree. He might be onto us."

"And? And?" Chopper seemed very eager to know what was going on with his best friend and Captain. All of them were.

"He said that he loves me," he said. The Straw Hats were quiet for a moment.

Then, "Huh?" was shared between them. Law knew he was going to have to explain it to them before Luffy got up or before one of them accidentally did so. It was going to be a long explanation because he couldn't even believe it himself. It was even hard to understand for himself because he always saw them as friends. Maybe a little more but he couldn't believe the younger man saw it that way as well.

To be honest, over time, Law had come to love Luffy too. The way he spoke, the way he handled thins, even the way he acted was entertaining yet frustrating. Law came to love all that about him. It was just a blast to be with him even if Law didn't act like it. He even missed him after he left the group. But he didn't realize that he loved him until after the issue with Kid a year ago. After he thought about what the other Captain said to him about liking another person. Now, he was sure Luffy felt the same way.

**I don't feel confident in this chapter. Please, let me know what you think. I could've done way better. But please accept this. Hope you all are having a marvelous day. I love you all so much. Tatty-bye!**

**Fun Facts:**

**1\. When water freezes to ice cubes, it will take up 9% more volume.**

**2\. The little piece of paper sticking out of a Hershey's Kiss is called a niggly wiggly.**

**3\. As a child, Jet Li performed with the Chinese National Wushu Team for President Nixon. Nixon asked him to be his personal bodyguard, but he declined.**

**4\. Eating grapefruit can restrict the effects of 43 different kinds of medications.**


	9. Sweet Moment

**Sweet Moment**

They were all sitting around the dining table in the kitchen. Luffy was still sleeping in the library. Law knew that the Straw Hat crew wanted some answers to what he found out and told them. Just telling them that Luffy loved him wasn't enough of an explanation.

"Can you tell us more about what you heard him say in the library?" Usopp asked. He had a confused look on his face.

"Yeah." He took a sip of his tea. Sanji had made tea for all of them. Just to calm them down. "When he got to the library, he started talking about his feelings for me. He said he'd come to love my company which turned to love for me over time."

Law was calm while talking about it. Mainly because he was going to reveal his own feelings to them for their Captain. He just hoped that they wouldn't flip out on him. For some reason, he wasn't embarrassed to tell them. Normally, he wasn't the kind of person that would openly speak about and share his feelings. But he felt that he needed to here.

"So, do you know why he attacked anyone and everyone who went near the room?" Zoro asked. He was sitting across the table from him. Law knew he was the closest one of them to Luffy. He was, of course, the first crew member he recruited.

"No. Not exactly. Straw Hat-ya didn't say anything about doing that. But I have a thought of what it could be." He took another sip of his tea. Law was sure what he was about to say was the truth. "I believe that he didn't want anything I touched to be disturbed. As I said before, it's just a thought. You'd have to ask him for the truth."

The crew shared a look between each other. Law could only guess that they were all thinking something similar. He just sat back and drank more of his tea. Then, they turned back to him. "Torao-kun, we've decided to try another experiment now," Robin announced with a bright smile on her face.

He put the cup down before eyeing them warily. "Are we done with the first experiment?" he inquired with suspicion in his voice. Law didn't know if he was liking where this was going. Wasn't one experiment with their Captain enough?

"Yes. We've found out what his problem is. It's you. You were what was wrong with him," Sanji said. He was smoking and drinking a cup of tea with them. "Now, we want to try something else."

"But there's something different that we're going to do," Chopper commented. Law was very creeped out now. They were able to come up with something so quickly and understand one another without saying a single word to each other.

"And, what is it?"

"That's something we won't tell you," Franky answered. "In this experiment, you're a guinea pig the same as Luffy. So, this one is going to be a secret from you and him. We're just letting you know we're doing one."

"I see." Law finished his cup before placing it on the table. "When are you all going to start it?" He, at least, wanted to know when they were going to start. _They can tell me that, right?_

"We're not sure yet. Maybe later today. Maybe tomorrow. Either way, we aren't going to tell you," Zoro informed him. "If we tell you, you'll try to be ready for anything. So, we're not going to tell you."

Giving off a heavy, defeated sigh, Law stood up from his seat. "I got it. As you all said, it's going to be an experiment. I'm one of them that you're trying it on." He walked to the door. "I'm going to check on Straw Hat-ya." They agreed. Right before he left the room, Law turned to them. "Oh. I almost forgot. I love him too."

Before they could react to what he said, he left the room completely. Law knew that they'd have questions for him later, but he just wanted some time alone with the other Captain. Even if he was asleep, he was used to the younger man being around him.

Once he was there, Law, quietly, opened the door. He didn't want to wake Luffy up. Entering, he shut the door after himself. Turning around, Law smiled a little at seeing Luffy sleeping across the seats. He walked over to him before sitting next to him.

Law reached out a hand and placed it in his hair. Luffy, unconsciously, pressed into it. His smile grew as he leaned over him. The younger man had no idea what was going on around him. _So vulnerable, quiet, and calm, but sweet and cute._

Leaning down, Law placed a kiss on his cheek. He was only able to do it because nobody was watching and Luffy was sleeping. Law didn't, normally, show affection like that but he felt that it was okay because they shared the same feelings. 

After a moment, he laid down beside him. The seat was narrow, so he had a little difficulty staying on it. Thinking for a second, Law decided that he'd make it more comfortable for both of them.

He lifted Luffy up before laying underneath him. Then, he laid Luffy on top of him. The other just wrapped his arms around his chest. He didn't mind it and just let him do it. Luffy's legs were in between his and his head was on his chest. Law closed his eyes and took in a deep breath.

Slowly, he started to fall asleep. Luffy's soft snoring and warmth were lulling him to sleep. It didn't matter to him. He'd take a nap with Luffy. No big deal. To him, he owed it to the other man. He had upset him greatly earlier by going along with the crew and the experiment. That was something he felt bad for.

...

_**Law kept his head down as he walked through the crowd in the town he stopped at. He was running out of food to eat. At this town, he was hoping to get his hands on some fresh fruit so he could keep going. The market here looked promising.** _

_**As he walked up to one of the stalls, he heard laughter. His thoughts immediately went to Straw Hat Luffy.** What? Why? Why am I thinking about him? **Shaking his head, he looked at the fruit there.**_

_**"Are you looking for something in particular, sir?" the woman manning the stall asked. He could tell that she was nervous. Of course, she probably knew who he was. Almost everyone did.** _

_**"Not really. I'm just looking for the moment," he answered. Law was trying to block out the laughter. His thoughts were a little worrying to him. Every time he heard someone laugh, Law could only picture Luffy in his mind.** _

_**After a few minutes, Law picked some fruit out. He got some peaches, bananas, apples, and oranges. Handing over the money, he turned to leave after thanking the woman. She seemed to be relaxed by then.** _

_**Turning to leave, he was almost run down by some kids. For a split second, the boy that ran past looked like Luffy. Law's eyes widened before he reached up and rubbed them. He didn't look like the other Captain anymore.** _

_What the hell's wrong with me? What's going on? Why do I keep seeing Straw Hat-ya? Am I losing my mind?_ **_He strolled back to his small boat. Law didn't care to stay in an inn. His boat was easier to sleep in and he didn't want to leave it alone. No telling who might steal it._ **

**_Once he was back at it, he relaxed inside as he grabbed a peach. Biting into it, he tried to figure out what was going on in his mind._ ** _It's been a while since I last saw him and his crew. I miss him. Is that what's going on with me? Am I seeing things because I miss him?_

**_That's when he thought even harder about it. Law missed his laughter, his way of doing things, just... everything about him. Law took another bite of his fruit._ ** _I wish we could meet up again. I just don't know where he is. And I haven't been with my crew for a while now. It might be impossible to just happen upon them at some point like this._

**_Nobody bothered him as he sat in his boat. He was trying to figure out his feelings. There wasn't just the feeling of missing the guy and his crew. A different feeling was there with it. It was a feeling just for Luffy. He couldn't quite place what it was but knew it was a good feeling._ **

**_After a while, Law finally figured it out. "I like him," he whispered as he continued to lay in the boat. He was staring up at the clouds in the sky. Law knew it was more than just like, but he needed to figure out if it was actually love and not just like._ **

...

Something pressing into his chest slowly woke Law up. He grunted as the thing pressed further into him. Opening his eyes, he found tha he was still in the library and laying on the seats. It looked to be getting dark outside. He didn't mind that. Also, it seemed that the crew never came into the room. That was a plus to him.

Moving his gaze from the ceiling, he decided to see what was pushing into him. When he saw what it was, his confusion went away. Luffy was still sleeping soundly on his chest and pressing his head deeper into him. The good thing was that it wasn't hurting him. But the pressure had woken him up.

Raising his hand, he placed it on Luffy's head. Snoring filled the air. The younger one of the two was still sleeping. Law sighed as he wrapped his other arm around Luffy's back and brought him closer to his body. Luffy's arms tightened on him as well.

Blinking a few times, Law thought this position was very intimate. He hoped that none of the others came in at that moment. It was embarrassing to be seen in such a compromising situation with Luffy. Both of them weren't known for being that close to others or even each other.

He closed his eyes again and thought about how he was going to explain it to Luffy when he woke up. That was something he hadn't even considered doing since he found out. If Luffy wasn't told, Law didn't know how he'd go about it. If he did tell him, that was the same problem.

 _I can just tell him and see how he'll take it. If I don't, his crew might tell him. That'd probably be a worse situation than if I tell him. He'd ask me why I didn't tell him myself. That's something I don't want to explain to him._ Law sighed again. _I'll tell him tomorrow. Maybe. Or when he gets up. I don't really know._

Law didn't go back to sleep. He stayed awake in that position for a while. Luffy kept sleeping until the sun was almost gone from the sky. Law wasn't bothered by it. He was thankful to be that close to him. It was pleasant and helped soothe his nerves. Also, he was trying to make up for what he'd done to him earlier.

After a while, Luffy started waking up. Law tried his hardest not to tense up. He didn't want to seem as if he was awake. His eyes were still closed. He felt Luffy lift his head up, so he allowed his hand to act as if he had no control over it.

"Huh?" Luffy's voice was still sleepy but sounded confused. The other sat up and Law's hand on his back slid down. His other hand fell off of him. Then, he felt hands on his chest and legs against the back of his thighs.

Nothing was said for a while. Law just continued to pretend to sleep. He wanted to see what Luffy would do. The hands on his chest didn't move at first. He guessed that the other was still trying to wake up more. Then, both of them went to his face. They cupped his cheeks.

"Torao..." was said in a low, sweet tone. Law willed his body not to react to it. While the hands still cupped his cheeks, he felt something on his chest again. "I thought you were gone. I'm so glad you're here. I'm not losing my mind."

That made him feel bad. The guy was remembering what happened earlier that day. But he was happy to find Law right there with him. He guessed that was a good thing. But right now, he was starting to get embarrassed.

Slowly, he started to open his eyes. Luffy's head was on him again. Law lifted his right hand ad placed it on Luffy's head once more. That made the other flinch before he looked up at him. "Dinner's probably ready. Let's get going," he said to him. Luffy raised his head with wide eyes. Then, he snatched his hands back.

"Y-Yeah." They got up and started for the kitchen. Law knew that Luffy was embarrassed. It was kind of funny to him. But he kept himself from laughing.

As soon as they entered the room with everyone else, every single one of Luffy's crewmates gave them odd looks. They looked happy, but Law couldn't help but feel that there was something behind that happiness. That wasn't a good feeling.

"Did you have a good nap, Luffy-san?" Brook asked as they sat down.

"I made something special for tonight," Sanji spoke up. "I hope you don't mind." 

"No. It's always great when you make something new. I can't wait for it," Luffy responded with a big smile on his face. He was starting to act normal again. "You said it's special. Is it some kind of occasion today?"

"Not really. I just decided to cook something, especially for you and Law. You two might like it." Law snapped his head up when he said his name. _Oh no. Black Leg-ya, what did you make? This might not end well._

Dinner was normal. Sanji said that the surprise was for dessert. Law was on edge because of how the others were acting. Something was up and he didn't want to be there anymore. The crew tried to act normal, but Law couldn't tell that they were hiding something from them. Luffy didn't seem to notice, though.

After dinner, Sanji brought out a covered platter. He placed it close to the two Captains. "Are you two ready to see what I have for you?" the cook asked.

"Yes," Luffy said. Law just nodded.

With that, Sanji lifted the lid. Law couldn't believe what he saw there. It made him want to disappear into oblivion or just melt into the ground. _How could you do that, Black Leg-ya?! Why didn't you give me some time to say something?!_

On the platter was a cake. It was white with red, black, and yellow icing around the edges of the top and bottom of it. The cake looked very pretty but had writing on the top. There were, also, two little figures that looked like both Captains. Law was a little creeped out at what was written there. ' _Love is binding. Hope you two get together soon,_ ' was what was written on top.

"Um..." Luffy replied. He looked back at Law. He didn't say anything to him. "What's this?"

"Oh. Has Law not told you yet?" Nami asked. She was smiling. Law felt as if she was going to say something he didn't want her to.

"Tell me what? Torao, did you have something to tell me?"

Before Law could even open his mouth to say something, Robin spoke up. "Torao-kun loves you too, Luffy." Law wanted to kill her at that moment. They didn't even give him a chance to tell the younger man anything about it.

Then, "What?" was asked by the other Captain. Law looked away, trying to hide his blush. _You assholes. Couldn't give me the time to do shit. I can't believe this._ "Torao, is that true?" _Now, I have to tell him. Way to go, guys._

**Hope you all like this chapter. I think it was kind of cute. Let me know your opinions. Have a lovely day and I love you all very much. Tatty-bye!**

**Fun Facts:**

**1\. A certain type of box jellyfish's venom will make you feel a strong sense of anxiety and sense of impending doom, and possibly thoughts of suicide. These symptoms can last up to two weeks.**

**2\. The island in Lake Bled is the only natural island in Slovenia.**

**3\. In Switzerland, it is illegal to flush the toilet after 10 pm.**

**4\. If sheep have long tails when they are born, the tails are cut off in order to prevent infection.**


	10. Direct Expressions of Feelings

**Direct Expressions of Feelings**

Everyone looked expectantly at him. Law knew that Luffy's crew was waiting for him to confirm that they spoke the truth while Luffy wanted to know if it was true. He felt like wanting to melt through the floor and seat from embarrassment to get away from them because they, pretty much, forced him into the situation he was in.

Knowing he had no other choice but to tell the truth, Law gave off a deep, heavy, defeated sigh. "Yes. What they are saying is true," he replied. Law hoped that they'd leave him alone about it now.

For the next few moments, nobody did anything. He glanced over to see Luffy looked as if he was going to pass out. From what? He could only guess. One of those guesses was he'd pass out from shock. The guy looked like he couldn't believe it.

When the spell of silence was broken, cheers sounded from the whole crew except for Luffy. They congratulated them for knowing how each other felt. Law felt his face heat up again and he shrunk down in his seat. Luffy just continued to stare at him as if he was still trying to register what he'd said.

"Now, we can have cake," Sanji announced as he began to cut pieces. Law accepted his piece without looking at Luffy. The younger Captain took his and ate but Law could still tell he was staring at him.

While they ate, the whole crew was talking about how everything was going to be different now. It was as if the two main men they were talking about weren't even there. Even Luffy stayed silent as they came up with scenarios that could follow after that day.

To say that Law was uncomfortable would be a HUGE understatement. Law was mortified by how they went about it. He had wanted to take the time to tell the younger man. Law was supposed to be the one to tell the other that he loved him. Not the guy's friends.

After they were done eating, they started drinking. Law went off to find another spot that was quiet and empty so he could collect his thoughts. He needed to think about what to do now that Luffy knew his feelings and they shared them for each other.

Taking a deep breath, he sighed as he sat on the deck near the head of the ship. It was dark out and the stars were shining down on him along with the full moon. Law closed his eyes as he entered his mind to figure some things out.

Also, he'd taken a bottle of alcohol with him to drink on. He hoped they wouldn't mind that he left. But from the cheers and laughter coming from the kitchen, he didn't think he had to worry about them. They were too preoccupied with their party to care.

Opening the bottle, he took a swig of it before trying to sort his thoughts out. _Straw Hat-ya was acting really weird. Normally, he'd be loud and excited. Why was he so quiet? Is something wrong? Is he upset that I wasn't the one to tell him my feelings? What's going on?_

As he took another drink from the bottle, he felt someone sit beside him. He'd been so caught up in trying to figure out what had been wrong with Luffy that he hadn't heard the person approach before. Law didn't say anything for the moment and just allowed the silence to continue between the two of them.

It wasn't long before the other spoke up, though. "Torao, you love me, right?" Luffy asked. Law had guessed that it was him. It wasn't a big surprise since he left without saying anything to anyone.

"Yes. Your crew was correct." He drank some more. "I told them earlier after I found out that you have the same feelings."

"I never told you that before," Luffy countered. "At least, I don't remember telling you that I feel that way towards you." Law knew the other was suspicious now. _I guess. I should tell him what was happening the two times I disappeared._

"No. You haven't said it to me face to face. But I heard you say it," he answered. Law was starting to get drunk from the vodka he'd taken from the kitchen. That didn't bother him because he was celebrating in his own way.

"When?"

"Earlier when you were in the library. I heard everything you said." Opening his eyes, he looked over to see Luffy was giving him a wide-eyed expression. It was almost as if he was horrified to know that he heard him.

"How...?"

Now, he chose to tell him what they were doing. "Your crew and I wanted to test something. So, I would be hidden somewhere on the ship. For the two times I went missing, I was just out of view." He drank while looking at him. Then, he continued. "I could hear everything being said on the ship wherever you went." With that said, he looked away. "I... I apologize for making you so upset and for making you think you were going crazy."

Before he could take another drink of his alcohol, he was tackled to the ground by the younger man. He was able to keep his bottle from spilling. When his world stopped spinning before him, he found Luffy sitting on his stomach with a pissed-off expression.

"You guys are such assholes and jerks!" Luffy yelled at him. He looked ready to hit him but only grabbed the front of his shirt. Although Law was still sore from the beating Kid gave him before. But the other didn't seem to care at the moment. "I really thought I was losing my mind! You kept disappearing and everyone was acting as if it was normal! Do you know how I felt?! I thought you really did disappear the second time!" The other lowered his head to where his face was hidden by his hair.

Then, he felt droplets start to rain down on his face. That's when Law realized that Luffy was crying. When he raised his head again, he saw that Luffy looked so distraught. It made him feel horrible that he made the StrawHat Captain cry. But all he could do was stare.

"I really thought I lost you," Luffy sobbed out. "It was already hard on me when I couldn't get into contact with you over the year you were gone. When I did talk to your crew, they said you weren't there. I tried everything to find you, but it was as if you were completely gone without a trace." Law just sat and listened, letting Luffy get out what he wanted to say. "I didn't want anyone to touch the room you were in because I wanted something to remember you by. You don't know what went through my head every day. I fought other Pirates to get my mind off of what could've happened to you."

Choosing to ask a question, Law spoke up. "Do you think I died?"

"I didn't fucking know! That's what I'm trying to say!" Luffy shot back. Law kept his features from giving away how ashamed he was of himself and how bad he felt for the man he loved. Luffy had been so worried that he'd died, and Law had no idea. "When I got to the island that I fought Kid on, I'd been checking all of the ports in case you were there. I never found you."

"I was there. I just didn't want Eustass-ya to know I was." The tears still fell and landed on his face before sliding off. Law didn't care about them. He was allowing Luffy to get his frustration and anger out at the moment. "That's why I told Tony-ya to tell you I said hello."

"He never did. That's why... *sniffle* ...why I was so shocked and happy to see you," Luffy replied.

"And I knew you'd recognize me even though I look younger."

"Because I know you. Even if... *sniffle* ...you look like a kid, I'd know it's... *sniffle* ...you." Luffy sobbed a bit more. "That's... *sniffle* ...That's how much I love you. I love you... *sniffle* ...enough to be able to re-recognize you no matter wh-what."

Choosing what to do next, Law, quickly, sat up before wrapping his arms around Luffy. He placed one of his hands on the back of Luffy's head while the other was on his back. They stayed like that for a moment before he spoke to him.

"I'm very sorry for making you so depressed and upset. I didn't mean to do that to you. I didn't know about your feelings for me at that time." Law felt Luffy push his face into his shoulder and cry even more. But he was trying to be nice and apologize to him. "I understand that I can't take back my actions and I was never very nice to you in the past. But I'll try to be nicer to you since we both love each other. I promise."

Law felt Luffy place his arms around him as well. It was reassuring that he hadn't upset him any more than he already had been. It made him feel much better because he was able to comfort the younger one.

Luffy cried into his shoulder while Law held him close. After a moment, he moved the hand on Luffy's back to grab the bottle. He filled his mouth with the liquid before pulling the other away a bit.

The guy seemed confused before Law placed his lips on Luffy's. He gasped, letting him inside. Law was able to give some of the vodka to Luffy while drinking some as well. He made sure the man drank it.

As soon as he was sure Luffy swallowed it, he began to explore the rubber man's mouth. It seemed to surprise him, but he allowed Law to do it. He was able to coax Luffy into moving his tongue with his.

Timidly, Luffy's tongue moved with his. Law made sure he wasn't too forceful as he wrapped his appendage around the other and started to suck on it. Luffy made a few moans, so Law gave off his own.

Luffy tasted of the red velvet cake with cream cheese frosting and vodka. It was a delicious combination. He couldn't get enough but he had to pull away for them to breathe. Both men were gasping for breath as they sat there, Luffy on top of Law.

"Wha... haah... What was th... haah... that?" Luffy questioned when he could talk a little again.

"I got you... haah... to stop... haah... crying," Law answered. And it was true. Luffy was no longer crying. His kiss had made the other stop. "And it was a... haah... kiss."

He watched as Luffy's eyes widened and his face went a light shade of red. The moonlight was able to help him see. Law didn't know what was going through his mind but chose to leave it alone. Then, he pressed his lips against his again. Law allowed Luffy to enter his mouth this time.

Luffy copied what Law had done and elicited a moan from both of them once more. Law was enjoying it and knew he was already slightly drunk. Luffy was, probably, still somewhat sober. He hadn't seen him drink any alcohol other than the mouthful he gave him.

When they parted ways for air this time, there was a big smile on Luffy's face. Law was a little confused. "What's... haah... with that... haah... look?" Law asked.

"I like... haah.. that. Can we do it... haah... more often?" he breathed out. Now it was Law's turn to go wide-eyed. He hadn't expected to hear that from him. Of course, he knew Luffy would want to express their love more openly. But not kissing.

"M-Maybe." Law's breathing was back under control. He looked away and drank some more from the bottle. "Want some?" Law offered the bottle to the other. Luffy accepted it and drank some as well.

For the next little while, the two shared the bottle until it was empty. By then, Law was completely drunk while Luffy was only halfway. He was on the verge of passing out by then as he sat next to Luffy.

The younger one had gotten off of him and they were sitting against the head of the ship next to each other like before. It was nice and Law was enjoying the moment they were having with each other. They could still hear the rest of the crew partying in the kitchen.

"Do you think they'll figure out we're gone?" Luffy inquired. Law rolled his head to the side to look at him.

"They probbly know we're gone by now," Law slurred out. He was starting to fall asleep. His head fell over to rest on Luffy's shoulder.

"Are you going to sleep?" Luffy's voice was quiet in his ears even though his head was right next to his.

"Mmm-hmm..." He moved his head closer to Luffy's neck, placing his head even closer to his. "Wake me later."

"Okay. Get some sleep." That was the last thing he heard before sleep claimed his drunken mind and brought him to the land of dreams. He didn't even think of what his actions that night could lead to the next day.

**This chapter was kind of bittersweet. I hope you all liked it. Have a fantabulous day. I love you all so, so much. Tatty-bye!**

**Fun Facts:**

**1\. There are 30 times more trees on Earth than there are stars in the Miky Way. It's estimated that there are 100 billion stars, and 3 trillion trees.**

**2\. The first spacecraft to visit Mars was Mariner 4 in 1965.**

**3\. According to Biblical Scholars, Jesus was more than likely born in a cave, not a stable as the tale says.**

**4\. The process by which bread toasts is called the "Maillard Reaction".**


End file.
